By Collin Catman
In a field that featured all the medalists from the Rio Olympic games and London IAAF World Championships, Oregon native and defending Pre Classic champion Ryan Crouser won the men’s shot put throw of 73 feet, 11 inches, breaking the previous record that he set in 2017 by 4 inches.
Crouser, the world No. 2 and Rio gold medalist, took the lead with his first throw, which traveled 72-1 1/2, and was never threatened from there.
“It was a nice easy throw, and to throw 72 that early gave me a lot of confidence,” Crouser said. “As I get used to throwing hard again and competing again, it’s really exciting because there is still a lot of potential there to improve.”
Crouser increased his lead when he threw 72-7 on his fourth throw.
Though the crowd gasped at the distance of his first three throws, it wasn’t until the fifth round that Crouser got the Hayward faithful to their feet with the meet record throw, also the farthest throw by an American this year.
“It’s really special for me to get it here at the last Prefontaine that we’re gonna have at Historic Hayward Field,” Crouser said. “My uncle texted me this morning saying good luck and about all the memories he has at Hayward Field.”
Though Crouser’s first three throws kept him in the lead, he believed that early season jitters hindered him from getting the meet record throw.
“I lined some stuff up and was a little bit more patient,” he said. “It was a little bit tight and wasn’t as patient as I would’ve liked.”
Rounding out the top three was Poland’s Michal Haratyk, who had a personal best on his last throw, which went 72-1, to edge Brazil’s Darlan Romani, who ended up in third place with his personal best, 72 feet, 1/4 inch.
Notably absent from the top 3 was world No. 1 Tom Walsh of New Zealand. Walsh finished fourth and was unable to top his 71-8 mark in the second round, as he fouled on his last three attempts. That mark was far short of his season and personal best throw, 74-4 1/4, which was the farthest throw since 1990.
As the Diamond League moves forward, Crouser is looking to shake off the early season rust due to a hand injury he suffered earlier in the season, but he is also pleased with the field he has to compete against.
“Out of that whole group, all 10 could’ve thrown 70 feet, and all of them have thrown 70 feet,” he said. “Shot from now until 2020 looks like it’s only gonna get better.”
