Olympics-Athletics-‘Veteran’ Crouser relishing bid for third shot gold

By Mitch Phillips

PARIS (Reuters) – To listen to Ryan Crouser planning his assault on an unprecedented third shot put gold you could be forgiven for thinking he is about to pick up his pension, yet the American world record holder is still only 31 and still in hot form.

Crouser led the way at the U.S. trials in June with a throw of 22.84 metres in a performance that was a satisfying confirmation that he was firmly on the road to recovery after a troublesome nerve issue in his elbow and that his less-intense training regime was not causing any deterioration of performance.

“There were some challenges this spring,” Crouser said in Paris, after the nerve problem was followed by a chest muscle injury.

“As a self-coached athlete, I have had a bit of difficulty recognising that I am getting older. This is a difficult pill to swallow. So there was some over-training and I had the injuries that accompany that. Now I realise I cannot do exactly what I did daily in the days when I was younger.”

Eventually dialling back on the intensity, while doubling down on his rehab, Crouser’s display in the trials has brought him to the Olympics in Paris feeling good about his chances and also determined to enjoy the trip.

“I still believe at the top end I am as good as I ever was, if not better,” he said. “It makes me cherish this Olympic experience even more because I can see that I cannot do this for ever. I know I have a limited time in the sport. Once you realise that, it makes you appreciate it even more.

“Every four years we get the chance to enchant the world. It is truly an honour to go out there and compete. Every Olympics is special. This is my third, chasing a third gold medal and I am as excited as I have ever been.”

Field events often struggle for attention alongside the track races, so Crouser was pleased to hear World Athletics president Sebastian Coe say last month that the shot was among the events he was looking forward to most in Paris.

“I think that’s a testament to how much my event in particular has grown,” he said. “You’ve seen shot put take a front seat when we’ve traditionally been towards the back and that’s been great.

“I mean, what we do as track and field athletes is very impressive and I feel like it’s the pinnacle of sport. We are the cutting edge of human performance.”

The United States’ domination of the event is extraordinary. They have 19 gold, 20 silver and 12 bronze in a total of 51 medals. Poland are next in terms of gold, with three, while the Soviet Union has the next-highest overall tally with five – and two of those came in 1980 when the U.S. boycotted the Moscow Games.

“Being in the US team is so special,” he said. “We joke that if the entire rest of the world had to qualify, no one would. If you took the entire rest of the world and put all their national championships together then USA would be 1-2-3. So it was a very challenging team to make.”

(Reporting by Mitch Phillips, editing by Christian Radnedge)