With two Olympic Championships and multiple world record improvements, defending champion Ryan Crouser was the clear favorite, but Crouser revealed on Instagram; pain in his leg over the previous two weeks turned out to be two blood clots.

[2] His single throw in the preliminary round was tentative, 21.48m barely sufficient for an automatic qualifier in eighth place.

Tom Walsh moved into second with a 21.69m with his New Zealand teammate Jacko Gill lurking in fourth with 21.46m.

In the fifth round, Kovacs put out a 22.12m to move back to third place, the next thrower Walsh couldn't quite answer with a 22.05m.

On their final throw, nobody could improve so by the time Crouser got to the ring, his championship defense was guaranteed.