The men's shot put field event at the 1972 Olympic Games took place on September 8 & 9.

[2][3] The event was won by Władysław Komar of Poland, the nation's first medal in the men's shot put.

It was the first time since World War II that an American had not won; George Woods had the best result for the United States with silver.

[1] India, Nigeria, and Saudi Arabia each made their debut in the men's shot put.

The United States appeared for the 17th time, the only nation to have competed in all Olympic shot put competitions to date.

The competition used the two-round format introduced in 1936, with the qualifying round completely separate from the divided final.

The Olympic record fell quickly, with Hartmut Briesenick's first throw in the final reaching 20.97 metres.