Crouser continues pursuit of becoming first back-to-back World Athletics Championships shot put gold medalist since Germany’s Storl in 2011 and 2013, attempting to overcome challenging medical condition in order to throw in Budapest

By David Woods for DyeStat

Photos by Kirby Lee and Jiro Mochizuki/Image of Sport

BUDAPEST, Hungary – Shot putter Ryan Crouser says he will compete in the World Athletics Championships despite two blood clots in his leg.

The world record-holder and reigning world champion posted Friday on Instagram about his condition.

Qualifying in the shot put is Saturday morning and the final later in the day (2:37 p.m., EDT).

Crouser said a medical team explained the risks and left the decision to him and his family.

“I made it to Budapest and will be competing tomorrow, despite unfortunate travel timeline, imperfect preparation, and two blood clots in my leg,” he posted. “I’ll be out there competing giving it everything I have.”

What once seemed like a certain gold medal has become a perilous circumstance.

“The last 20 days have been some of the most frustrating and stressful of my life,” Crouser posted.

Crouser said he awakened one morning with soreness in his calf, was in pain for 10 days and finally had an ultrasound examination the day before departing for Budapest. The scan showed the blood clots.

Crouser said he is taking blood thinners to minimize risk and prevent the condition from worsening. He said he had none of the typical symptoms – swelling, heat, redness, throbbing – and that the ultrasound missed them because the clots were so small.

“I don’t believe there’s any way the medical team that has been working with me could have done any better job than what they have,” he posted.

Crouser, 30, is a University of Texas graduate from Boring, Ore. He was a World Under-18 champion as long ago as 2009.

He was Olympic champion in 2016 and 2021, and he is trying to become the first shot putter to win four global gold medals. Crouser is attempting to become the first male athlete to secure back-to-back World titles in the shot put since Germany’s David Storl in 2011 and 2013.

Crouser broke his own world record May 27 with a distance of 77-7.75 (23.56m) at the USATF Los Angeles Grand Prix at UCLA’s Drake Stadium. He has 12 puts in his career of 23 or more meters, a distance only three other men in history have reached.

Crouser, Joe Kovacs and Josh Awotunde swept the medals for the United States at the 2022 Worlds. Kovacs was fourth at nationals but made the team because, with Crouser’s bye, the Americans earned four entries, including Payton Otterdahl.

Last year’s World title was the first for Crouser, who was upset by Kovacs in 2019. Another American, John Godina, won three: 1995, 1997, 2001.

Contact David Woods at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter: @DavidWoods007.