PARIS — American Ryan Crouser became the first man to complete a hat-trick in the Olympic shot put on Saturday, adding another gold medal to his already crowded trophy case with a powerful throw of 22.90 meters.
“Throwing a 16-pound ball is not easy on the body,” Crouser said. “Throwing it as hard as you can, as far as you can, it exhausts you.
“Being an Olympic champion three times in a row is kind of a testament to the total dedication and hard work that has gone into it. You just have to focus and realise that it's a 365-day-a-year job.”
Crouser's compatriot Joe Kovacs won silver and Jamaican Rajindra Campbell took bronze.
The world record holder struggled with a nerve problem in his elbow this year but had no problems at the Stade de France as he produced his best throw of the season on his third attempt and applauded with satisfaction.
“The self-doubt and injuries I suffered before doing this make me appreciate it even more,” Crouser said.
He added that his support network helped him overcome those feelings of uncertainty. The mere presence of some of his loved ones at the Games also helped, he said.
“I'm very lucky to have my family here. I haven't seen them,” Crouser said. “They've been running around Paris, having fun. I've been training and hanging out in the park. [Olympic] People just killing time and waiting to compete.
“They've been taking cooking classes, they've been seeing the Eiffel Tower, so I'm a little jealous. I need to catch up on how fun it is.”
The victory underlined the United States' total dominance in the event, as they have now won 20 Olympic gold medals in the men's shot put. The next closest country is Poland with three.
Crouser, a two-time world champion, clapped and cheered as he clocked a time of 22.64 on his first throw that would have been enough to take him to the top of the podium.
He pumped up the crowd before making his second attempt, pumping his fist after throwing 22.69 and fans erupted when he bettered that mark with the third throw.
Rain began to fall midway through the competition and several competitors slipped, including Crouser, who fouled his next two attempts and failed to make a sixth throw, having clinched gold.
Crouser, who said he believes he can improve his own world record of 23.56, raised his arms and smiled broadly as the crowd cheered his latest achievement.
Campbell had been on the radar of few observers before Saturday's action, but he caught the crowd's attention with a tremendous throw of 22.15 on his second attempt.
Kovacs was fourth in qualifying when he stormed onto the podium in dramatic fashion, throwing 22.15 on his final attempt to equal Campbell's best mark.
He took silver, beating the Jamaican thanks to his second best throw.
ESPN's Coley Harvey contributed to this story.
