Kovacs sets the second best performance in history with 23.23m in the shot put in Zurich

Two-time world champion Joe Kovacs threw to a Diamond League and a meeting record of 23.23m in the men’s shot put on the first day of the Weltklasse Zurich on Sechselautenplatz to move to second on the all-time list. The first session of the Wanda Diamond League meeting was held as a street event in one of the most famous squares on the shore of the Lake Zurich. 

Only Ryan Crouser threw further in history when he set the world record with 23.37m at the US Olympic Trials in Eugene last year. 

Kovacs started the competition with 22.67m to equal the meeting record that had been set by Crouser last year. Crouser responded by producing exactly the same mark as Kovacs to join the early lead. Kovacs threw 23.23m in the second round improving his previous PB of 22.91m he set when he won his second world title in Doha 2019. 

Crouser improved to 22.74m in the third round to finish second. This year’s Commonwealth Games champion Tom Walsh threw 21.90m to take third place. 

Kovacs has remained unbeaten since his world silver medal behind Crouser at the World Championships in Eugene. He won in Lausanne with 22.65m beating Crouser and scored three more wins in  Silesia, Szekesfehrvar and Brussels. 

Joe Kovacs: “I am super excited. I had so many throws this year over 22.80m, so I feel like I was building. It feels good to tick the box and be a 23-metre shot putter. There is a bigger throw left in there. I know that Ryan will throw further, so I will have to throw further next year”.

Women’s shot put: 

World champion Chase Ealey threw 20.19m in the third round to beat Commonwealth gold medallist Sarah Mitton from Canada in the women’s shot put. Ealey opened with 19.84m, which would have been enough for the win. Ealey improved to 20.19m. Ealey also produced a throw of 19.62m in the fourth round. Mitton threw 19.56m to take second place. European indoor champion Auriol Dongmo achieved a best throw of 19.46m in the third round. 

Chase Ealey: “The energy was amazing. I like having the crowd right there. It’s really cool and I like bringing on the claps and hearing them giving us the energy. It’s really nice. I almost really forget that my foot is really hurting”. 

Men’s high jump: 

Olympic champion Gianmarco Tamberi won his second consecutive Diamond Trophy setting his seasonal best of 2.34m on his second attempt. Tamberi married to his longtime partner Chiara Bontempi and postponed his…