The men's shot put event at the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow, Soviet Union had an entry list of 16 competitors from 11 nations.

The final was held on Wednesday 30 July 1980, with the qualifying round staged two days earlier in the Lenin Stadium.

[1] The event was won by Vladimir Kiselyov of the Soviet Union, the nation's first victory in the men's shot put.

Beyer (after gold in 1976) and Aleksandr Baryshnikov (silver, after bronze in 1976) became the ninth and tenth men to win multiple medals in the shot put.

Returning finalists from the 1976 Games were defending champion Udo Beyer of East Germany, bronze medalist Aleksandr Baryshnikov of the Soviet Union, sixth-place finisher Geoff Capes of Great Britain, and twelfth-place finisher Reijo Ståhlberg of Finland.