Athletics at the 1932 Summer Olympics – Men's shot put

The men's shot put event at the 1932 Olympic Games took place July 31. 15 athletes from 10 nations competed.[1] The 1930 Olympic Congress in Berlin had reduced the limit from 4 athletes per NOC to 3 athletes.[2] Leo Sexton of the United States won the gold medal, the nation's third consecutive and eighth overall victory in the men's shot put.[3] It was also the third consecutive year the Americans took the top two places (including a full medal sweep in 1924), as Harlow Rothert took silver. František Douda won Czechoslovakia's first shot put medal with a bronze.

Men's shot put
at the Games of the X Olympiad
Leo Sexton
VenueLos Angeles Memorial Coliseum
DatesJuly 31
Competitors15 from 10 nations
Winning distance16.005 OR
Medalists
1st place, gold medalist(s) Leo Sexton
 United States
2nd place, silver medalist(s) Harlow Rothert
 United States
3rd place, bronze medalist(s) František Douda
 Czechoslovakia
← 1928
1936 →

Background

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This was the ninth appearance of the event, which is one of 12 athletics events to have been held at every Summer Olympics. Bronze medalist Emil Hirschfeld of Germany was the only returning thrower from the 1928 Games. The top two throwers in 1932 were Leo Sexton and Bruce Bennett of the United States; Bennett failed to make the American team, however, leaving Sexton as the Olympic favorite. He faced strong challengers, however, as Hirschfeld, František Douda of Czechoslovakia, and Zygmunt Heljasz of Poland had taken turns as world record holder between 1928 and 1932.[1]

Argentina, Poland, and South Africa each made their debut in the men's shot put. The United States appeared for the ninth time, the only nation to have competed in all Olympic shot put competitions to date.

Competition format

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The competition continued to use the two-round format used in 1900 and since 1908, with results carrying over between rounds. Each athlete received three throws in the qualifying round. The top six men advanced to the final, where they received an additional three throws. The best result, qualifying or final, counted.[1][4]

Records

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These were the standing world and Olympic records (in metres) prior to the 1932 Summer Olympics.

World record   Zygmunt Heljasz (POL) 16.05 Poznań, Poland 29 June 1932
Olympic record   John Kuck (USA) 15.87 Amsterdam, Netherlands 29 July 1928

Leo Sexton broke the Olympic record with a 15.940 metres throw in the fourth round before breaking it again with 16.005 metres in the final throw.

Schedule

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Date Time Round
Sunday, 31 July 1932 14:30 Final

Results

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Rank Athlete Nation 1 2 3 4 5 6 Distance Notes
  Leo Sexton   United States 15.600 15.560 15.720 15.940 OR 15.480 16.005 OR 16.005 OR
  Harlow Rothert   United States 15.670 15.675 15.430 14.990 X X 15.675
  František Douda   Czechoslovakia 15.610 15.240 14.490 15.050 15.220 15.330 15.610
4 Emil Hirschfeld   Germany 15.210 15.360 15.020 15.380 15.540 15.560 15.560
5 Nelson Gray   United States 15.460 14.900 14.840 13.740 X X 15.460
6 Hans-Heinrich Sievert   Germany 13.870 14.990 14.750 15.070 X X 15.070
7 Zygmunt Heljasz   Poland 13.800 14.800 14.490 Did not advance 14.800
8 József Darányi   Hungary 14.580 14.680 14.670 Did not advance 14.680
9 Kalle Järvinen   Finland 13.800 14.630 13.910 Did not advance 14.630
10 Jules Noël   France 14.370 13.910 14.530 Did not advance 14.530
11 Harry Hart   South Africa 14.470 X 14.220 Did not advance 14.470
12 Clément Duhour   France X 12.310 13.960 Did not advance 13.960
13 Paul Winter   France 12.570 12.600 13.140 Did not advance 13.140
14 Pedro Elsa   Argentina 11.770 X 11.210 Did not advance 11.770
Antônio Lira   Brazil X X X Did not advance No mark
Jesús Aguirre   Mexico DNS
Carmine Giorgi   Brazil DNS
Emil Janausch   Austria DNS
Pat O'Callaghan   Ireland DNS
Georgios Theodoratos   Greece DNS

References

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  1. ^ a b c "Shot Put, Men". Olympedia. Retrieved 2 October 2020.
  2. ^ Official Report, p. 377.
  3. ^ "Athletics at the 1932 Los Angeles Summer Games: Men's Shot Put". sports-reference.com. Archived from the original on 17 April 2020. Retrieved 5 January 2018.
  4. ^ Official Report, p. 453.