Ryan Crouser facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Ryan Crouser

Crouser in 2019 at the Millrose Games
Personal information
Born	(1992-12-18) December 18, 1992 (age 32) Portland, Oregon, U.S.
Height	6 ft 7 in
Weight	320 lbs
Sport
Country	United States
Sport	Track and field
Event(s)	Shot put Discus throw
College team	Texas Longhorns
Club	Nike
Achievements and titles
Highest world ranking	1st (Shot put, 2023)
Personal best(s)	SP: 23.56 m (2023) DT: 63.90 m (2014) JT: 61.16 m (2008)
Medal record Men's athletics Representing the  United States Olympic Games Gold 2016 Rio de Janeiro Shot put Gold 2020 Tokyo Shot put Gold 2024 Paris Shot put World Championships Gold 2022 Eugene Shot put Gold 2023 Budapest Shot put Silver 2019 Doha Shot put World Indoor Championships Gold 2024 Glasgow Shot put Silver 2022 Belgrade Shot put World Youth Championships Gold 2009 Bressanone Shot put Silver 2009 Bressanone Discus throw

Ryan Crouser (born December 18, 1992) is an American track and field athlete. He is famous for throwing the shot put and discus. Ryan is especially good at the shot put. He is the only person to win three Olympic gold medals in this event. He won in Rio de Janeiro (2016), Tokyo (2020), and Paris (2024). He is also a two-time outdoor World Champion.

Ryan holds the world record for shot put, both indoors and outdoors. He set the outdoor world record at 23.56 meters in May 2023. This improved his earlier record of 23.37 meters from July 2021. He has held the indoor record of 22.82 meters since January 2021.

Early in his career, Ryan set national high school records. He won gold in shot put at the 2009 World Youth Championships. While at the University of Texas at Austin, he won four NCAA titles in shot put. He has won the national shot put title seven times between 2016 and 2024. He also won four national indoor shot put titles.

Ryan won his first Olympic gold medal at the 2016 Rio Olympics. He threw 22.52 meters. He kept his title at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, setting an Olympic record of 23.30 meters. He also won gold at the 2024 Paris Olympics with a throw of 22.90 meters. At the 2019 World Championships in Doha, he won a silver medal. Ryan then won gold at the 2022 World Championships in Eugene and the 2023 World Championships in Budapest. His throw of 23.51 meters in Budapest was a record for the farthest throw at a World Championships.

Ryan Crouser has received many awards. He was named Track & Field News World Male Athlete of the Year. He also won the Jesse Owens Award, which is a top honor in USA Track & Field. He was a finalist for Male Track and Field World Athlete of the Year twice. This award is given by World Athletics, the main group for track and field sports. Ryan has won major titles in the Diamond League, Olympic Games, World Indoor Championship, World Outdoor Championship, and World Youth Championship.

Ryan's Early Life and Youth Competitions

Ryan Crouser was born on December 18, 1992, in Portland, Oregon. He grew up in a nearby area called Boring. His family has a strong history in throwing events.

• His father, Mitch Crouser, was an alternate for the 1984 Olympic discus team.
• His uncle, Brian Crouser, competed in two Olympics in javelin.
• Another uncle, Dean Crouser, was great at shot put and discus.
• His cousins, Sam and Haley Crouser, are also javelin throwers.

Ryan started track and field in fifth grade. By high school, he was competing at a very high level.

High School Achievements

In 2009, during his second year at Sam Barlow High School in Gresham, Oregon, Ryan set a national record. He threw the 1.62 kg (3.58 lb) discus 61.72 meters. This was also the Oregon high school state record until his cousin Sam broke it later. Ryan won both the 5 kg shot put and the 1.5 kg discus at the 2009 National Youth Championships. This allowed him to represent the United States at the 2009 World Youth Championships in Bressanone, Italy. There, he won gold in shot put with a record throw of 21.56 meters. He also won a silver medal in discus.

In 2011, his senior year, Ryan broke the national high school indoor record. He threw the 5.44 kg (12 lb) shot put 23.54 meters. This was a great comeback after a foot injury in his junior year. As a senior, Ryan also broke the national high school record in discus. He threw 72.40 meters, beating Mason Finley's record from 2009. After high school, Ryan went to the University of Texas at Austin. This was different from his family's tradition of going to the University of Oregon.

College Sports Career

Ryan Crouser competed for the University of Texas at Austin from 2012 to 2016. He won four NCAA titles in the shot put during this time.

Freshman and Sophomore Years

As a freshman, Ryan had a torn ligament in his throwing hand and was sick. Because of this, he took a redshirt year for the 2013 indoor season. His first college title came as a sophomore at the 2013 NCAA Outdoor Championships. He threw 21.09 meters. Ryan was good at his studies, but the heavy workload made him switch his major from engineering to economics.

Junior and Senior Years

In his third year, Ryan won another national shot put title at the 2014 NCAA Indoor Championships in March. He threw 21.21 meters. That summer, he won his third national shot put title at the 2014 NCAA Outdoor Championships, with a throw of 21.12 meters. During this event, he hurt his left foot on his last throw. This made him withdraw from the discus event. In his fourth year, he placed second at the 2015 NCAA Indoor Championships. He threw 20.93 meters. At the 2015 NCAA Outdoor Championships, Ryan placed fifth in both shot put and discus.

Because he red-shirted in 2013, Ryan had one more year of college eligibility for the 2016 indoor season. He used this for his fifth year. He set a personal best of 21.73 meters at the 2016 Big 12 Indoor Championships. This throw was the farthest in the event that year. Later that winter, Ryan won his second college indoor title and fourth title overall at the 2016 NCAA Indoor Championships. In June 2016, he was a finalist for the Bowerman award. This award is given to the best student-athlete by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association.

Professional Competition Highlights

2016–2018: Olympic Gold in Rio

Crouser raises his fist in victory.

Tomas Walsh (left), Joe Kovacs (center), and Crouser (right)

Crouser wins the shot put final at the 2016 Summer Games in Rio de Janeiro

While getting ready for the 2016 US Olympics trials, Ryan was also studying for a master's degree in finance. He trained with Mac Wilkins, a former Olympic discus champion. At the trials, Ryan beat the world champion, Joe Kovacs. He won his first national title and qualified for the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. On August 8, Ryan won the gold medal. He set an Olympic record with his throw of 22.52 meters. He was the first American man to win this event since 2004.

Ryan won another national shot put title in June 2017. He competed at the 2017 World Championships in London, finishing sixth. At the 2018 USA Outdoor Championships on June 23, he placed second. In the 2018 Diamond League, a series of international competitions, he won in Eugene, Monaco, and Zagreb.

2019: Silver Medal in Doha

Crouser at the 2019 USA Indoor Championships

Ryan started 2019 with a win at the Millrose Games in New York on February 9. He threw 22.33 meters. He then won at the 2019 USA Indoor Championships on February 23. In July, he won a national title at the 2019 USA Outdoor Championships. This qualified him for the 2019 World Championships in Qatar. At the World Championships on October 5, Ryan threw a personal best of 22.90 meters. He finished just behind Joe Kovacs (22.91 meters). World Athletics called this the "greatest – and closest – shot put competition ever".

2020: A Challenging Year

Ryan started 2020 with wins at the Millrose Games and the 2020 USA Indoor Championships. His competition schedule stopped until July because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The pandemic caused the 2020 Summer Games to be postponed. To stay competitive, Ryan took part in bass fishing tournaments. He also built his own shot put ring near his home. On July 19, he competed again at the American Track League Meet. He achieved a personal best of 22.91 meters, which was the fourth best throw in history. Ryan finished the year undefeated in all 10 meets he entered.

2021: World Records and Tokyo Gold

On January 24, Ryan set a world record for the indoor shot put at the American Track League meet. His throw of 22.82 meters broke the old record set by Randy Barnes in 1989. The 28-year-old set another world record at the 2020 US Olympic trials in July 2021. He threw 23.37 meters, breaking the outdoor world record of 23.12 meters held by Barnes since 1990. His record was officially confirmed by World Athletics on August 11, 2021. At the 2020 Summer Games in Tokyo, Ryan defended his Olympic title. He won gold and set an Olympic record of 23.30 meters. Three of his six throws at these Games were farther than the previous Olympic record.

Ryan was named the World Male Athlete of the Year by Track & Field News. He also received the Jesse Owens Award from USA Track & Field. He was a finalist for the World Athlete of the Year by World Athletics. In 2021, he had the three farthest throws in history. He also had nine of the top ten throws of the year. He remained undefeated since 2019 and won the Diamond League final. By the end of the season, he had made 163 throws over 22 meters in his career. This is the highest number ever recorded.

2022: Gold in Eugene

Josh Awotunde (left), Joe Kovacs (center), and Crouser (right)

On February 27, Ryan finished first in shot put at the 2022 USA Indoor Track and Field Championships. The next month, he went to Serbia for the 2022 World Athletics Indoor Championships. He won a silver medal, behind Darlan Romani from Brazil. Ryan had some nerve issues in his throwing arm during this time. That summer, on June 24, the 29-year-old won a national shot put title. This qualified him for the 2022 World Championships in Eugene. Later that month, at the World Championships, Ryan won his first world title. He threw 22.94 meters. His victory was part of an American sweep, with Joe Kovacs and Josh Awotunde taking silver and bronze.

2023: World Record and Gold in Budapest

In 2023, Ryan broke his own world record in shot put. He won gold at the 2023 World Championships. He also won 13 out of his 14 competitions. His world record throw of 23.56 meters happened on May 27 at the Los Angeles Grand Prix. The 30-year-old said this was due to a new technique he developed, called the "step-across". This method adds a side-stepping motion to help with balance and power. On July 9, Ryan won another national shot put title at the 2023 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships. This qualified him for the 2023 World Championships in Budapest, Hungary. Before he left for Budapest, doctors found two blood clots in his legs. He took blood thinners to reduce risks while competing. In Budapest, Ryan won his second world title. He set a World Championship record of 23.51 meters. Ryan finished his season at the Prefontaine Classic on September 17. There, he had his first loss of the year to Joe Kovacs. After the season, World Athletics named Ryan a finalist for World Athlete of the Year.

2024: Gold in Glasgow and Paris

In February, Ryan won his fourth national indoor shot put title at the 2024 USA Indoor Track and Field Championships in Albuquerque. He threw 22.80 meters. This throw qualified him for the 2024 World Athletics Indoor Championship. There, he threw 22.77 meters to win his first World Indoor Championship. Ryan's throw was 70 cm farther than the second-place finisher, Tom Walsh. At the 2024 Olympic Trials in June, Ryan won his seventh national shot put title. He beat Joe Kovacs and earned another spot in the Olympic Games.

At the 2024 Olympic Games, Ryan won the shot put. He became the first athlete to win gold medals in the event at three Olympics in a row. This victory came after Ryan dealt with an injury earlier in the year. Marcus Thompson of The Athletic wrote: "What makes this one extra special is Crouser, at one point this year, thought his career was over".

2025: World Shot Put Series

Ryan Crouser helped create the World Shot Put Series. The first event happened in April 2025. This event had a special format where athletes had to beat others to avoid being eliminated. Ryan finished fifth in this competition.

Training and Coaching

Ryan Crouser's training is very detailed.

• He sprints 20 to 40 meters three times a week.
• He does dynamic jumping exercises, like box jumps, three times a week. These help his agility and power.
• He uses an agility ladder to improve his footwork.
• For shot put, he practices four to five times a week. Each session involves 20 to 40 throws and lasts 90 to 120 minutes.

Ryan uses training ideas from MMA (mixed martial arts) and baseball pitching. He focuses on how these sports use rotational power and body movements. This helps him increase the speed and energy in his throws. He also uses radar technology to improve his throws. This technology, often used by golfers, helps Ryan measure the angle and speed of his throws.

Nutrition for Athletes

During the competition season, Ryan eats about 5,500 to 6,000 calories every day. His diet includes five meals, each about 1,000 calories. He also snacks to keep his energy levels steady. His meals are mostly lean proteins like chicken and ground beef, with brown rice and quinoa. In an interview with GQ, he talked about eating enough for his 6'7" (201 cm) and 320-pound (145 kg) body. He said, "Food is almost a part of training for me. I'm eating on a set schedule that makes sure I never get hungry." He also drinks 16 ounces of milk after each of his five daily meals.

Coaching Role

In December 2019, Ryan moved from the United States Olympic Training Center in San Diego. He moved to the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville. There, he became a volunteer coach for the men's track and field team. Ryan says that coaching college students helps him stay excited about competing. In March 2024, he said, "It can be helpful to have the college kids there for perspective. I was in their shoes once, and look at far how I've come." At the 2024 Summer Olympics, one of his Razorback students, Rojé Stona, broke the Olympic record in the men's discus throw and won the gold medal.

Personal Life

Ryan Crouser became engaged to Megan Clark in 2024.

Achievements

All statistics are from Ryan's profile on World Athletics, unless noted otherwise.

Crouser on the podium after winning the Zagreb Diamond League meeting in 2018

Crouser prepares to throw the shot put at 2022 World Championships in Eugene

World Rankings and Best Throws

Key:       World record (in bold)

Awards

• Night of Legends Award 2021: Jesse Owens Male Athlete of the Year

See also

In Spanish: Ryan Crouser para niños