The Shot Put: Rules, Records and Fantasy Scoring

What the event is

Athletes throw a heavy metal ball, the shot, as far as they can from a small circle. The men's shot weighs 7.26kg and the women's 4kg, and it must be pushed from the shoulder rather than thrown like a ball. Shot putters are the most powerful athletes in the sport, and the best of them combine that power with a technique that has been refined for decades.

How it is run

The circle is 2.135m across with a curved stop board at the front. Athletes must start from a stationary position, complete the throw without touching the top of the stop board or stepping outside the circle, and leave through the back half of the circle. Breaking any of those rules makes the throw a foul.

Two techniques dominate. The glide is a linear shuffle across the circle; the spin is a rotational technique borrowed from the discus that generates more speed but is harder to control. Most of the leading men now spin; many leading women still glide.

Each athlete gets three throws, and the top eight get three more. The result is the single best legal throw. Championships run a qualifying round and a final. One-day meets run a single competition, and the shot is a fixture of the indoor season.

What a world-class mark looks like

Throwing 22m for men and 20m for women is world class. Championship medals typically need 22m or better and 19.80m or better. The men's world record of 23.56m was set in 2023; the women's record of 22.63m has stood since 1987.

How the shot put scores in Heatsheet

The shot put fills the field roster slot, sharing the two-starter limit with the jumps and the other throws. Finals pay 10 down to 1.

Shot putters are among the most reliable scorers in fantasy track and field. The event has a clear hierarchy, the leading throwers rarely foul out, and they compete often, including through the indoor season. A top-three shot putter drafted in the middle rounds will usually outscore a sprinter picked several rounds earlier. Full rules on the scoring page.