PARIS, France – Former North Dakota State NCAA champion thrower Payton Otterdahl placed fourth in the shot put at the Paris Olympic Games on Saturday.
Otterdahl stood in third place for a majority of the competition, but American Joe Kovacs vaulted into the silver medal position with a clutch final-round heave and bumped Otterdahl down to fourth.
Otterdahl’s top throw on the day measured 72-03.50 (22.03m), as the later rounds of the competition were impacted by rainfall and a slick surface in the throwing ring.
American Ryan Crouser won his third consecutive Olympic gold medal in the event, Kovacs took silver, and Jamaican Rajindra Campbell claimed bronze with a mark of 72-08.00 (22.15m).
Otterdahl entered the Olympics at No. 4 on the world performance list this season.
It was Otterdahl’s highest finish at a global championship event, improving upon his fifth place finish in the shot put at the 2023 World Championships. He took 10th place in the shot put at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021.