The men's shot put was a track & field athletics event at the 1900 Summer Olympics in Paris. It was held on July 14 and July 15, 1900. 11 shot putters from five nations competed. The event was won by Richard Sheldon of the United States, the nation's second consecutive victory in the men's shot put. Josiah McCracken took silver and Robert Garrett took bronze (the first man to win two medals in the event, after gold in 1896), completing an American medal sweep.
The winning margin was 1.25 metres. As of 2023, this is the only time the men's shot put has been won by more than one metre at the Olympics.
Background
This was the second appearance of the event, which is one of 12 athletics events to have been held at every Summer Olympics. Defending champion Robert Garrett was the only returning shot putter from 1896. Sotirios Versis had competed in the discus in 1896, but had not competed in the shot put then. Richard Sheldon was the 1896 IC4A and 1899 AAU champion (doubling in the discus in the latter competition). World record holder George Gray was not present.
Hungary and Sweden each made their debut in the men's shot put. Denmark, Greece, and the United States all appeared for the second time.
Competition format
There were two rounds of throwing, with results carried over from qualifying to the final. The format of the competition is unclear; it appears that each thrower received three throws and the finalists received three more. The top five throwers in the qualifying round qualified for the final. The throwing stage was a 2.13 metre square.
Records
These were the standing world and Olympic records (in metres) prior to the 1900 Summer Olympics.
* unofficial
Richard Sheldon set a new Olympic record in the qualification with 13.80 metres and improved his mark in the final to 14.10 metres. All five of the finalists had beaten the old Olympic record in the qualifying round.
Schedule
Date Time Round Saturday, 14 July 1900 10:55 Qualifying Sunday, 15 July 1900 14:25 Final
Results
All throwers competed in the qualifier on July 14. Versis did not record a fair mark and it is not clear if he actually competed. The top five advanced to the final.
Qualifier marks were still valid in the final. McCracken and Garrett did not compete, as the final was held on July 15, a Sunday. No changes in position occurred during the final.
Rank Athlete Nation Distance Notes Qualifier Final Best Richard Sheldon 13.80 14.10 14.10 Josiah McCracken 12.85 X 12.85 Robert Garrett 12.37 X 12.37 4 Rezső Crettier 11.58 12.07 12.07 5 Panagiotis Paraskevopoulos 11.29 11.52 11.52 6 Gustaf Söderström 11.18 Did not advance 11.18 7 Artúr Coray 11.13 Did not advance 11.13 8 Truxtun Hare 10.92 Did not advance 10.92 9 August Nilsson 10.86 Did not advance 10.86 10 Charles Winckler 10.76 Did not advance 10.76 — Sotirios Versis No mark Did not advance No mark
References
Sources International Olympic Committee. De Wael, Herman. Herman's Full Olympians: "Athletics 1900". Accessed 18 March 2006. Available electronically at .