U.S. Men Dominate Shot Put in Shanghai

By Scott Bush

The second Diamond League meet of the season took place in Shanghai, China Sunday, where many of the world's best track and field athletes squared off with early season DL points on the line. While many might expect that athletes are still well off their peak form, a flurry of meet records still fell, as close finishes and intense competition defined Sunday's event.

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What We Learned

It should come as no surprise that our shot putters stole the show in Shanghai. It's simply incredible that the U.S. continues to dominate the men's shot put like it does, and Sunday's action did nothing but cement just how strong the Americans putters are. 

Christian Cantwell put on a show, setting the tone early with a big first throw, only to take the lead for good on his fifth throw. Cantwell now owns four of the top six throws in the world this year. The other two throws in the top six belong to runner-up, and fellow American, Joe Kovacs. Kovacs, the former Penn State standout, finished a close second 21.73m-21.52m. Rounding out the U.S. sweep was Ryan Whiting. 

Between Cantwell, Kovacs, Whiting and University of Texas standout Ryan Crouser, Americans hold the top 10 best throws in 2014. Fans wondered even a couple years ago what would happen to the U.S. depth after Adam Nelson, Cantwell, Reese Hoffa and John Godina all retired. Well even though Cantwell and Hoffa are still getting after it, it must be said that Kovacs, Whiting, Crouser and Kurt Roberts (owns the 12th best throw in the world currently) are all 27 or younger.

While the American shot putters were throwing down, so was American steepler Emma Coburn. The Olympian and former University of Colorado champion simply ran away from the women's field, winning her first Diamond League event and becoming the second fastest American in history with her 9:19.80 best. Coburn's performance was inspiring, pulling away from a strong field early and never looking back, winning by nearly six seconds.

WATCH COBURN'S WIN

Who is Coburn sitting behind on the American list you might ask? None other than her training partner Jenny Simpson, who owns the American record of 9:12.50. Coburn cruised to an in control win Sunday. Challenged for the win, it has to make fans wonder if she could run a few seconds faster. The season is young, Coburn's season is only getting started and cutting off another 6-7 seconds seems completely within reason. So...can she best Simpson's best in 2014? We'll see.

Speaking of Simpson, her runner-up performance in the women's 1,500m was inspiration. It's always fun seeing Americans really mix it up for the win in top-tier races. Simpson ran the second fastest time of her career with her 4:00.42 best, finishing less than two seconds off of Sweden's Abeba Aregawi, who won in 3:58.72. Simpson is showing she's ready to be a sub-4 threat every time out. Aregawi is considered the best 1,500m runner in the world currently, so for Simpson to run stride for stride and only lose out in the last 75 meters is a very good sign.

The biggest surprise of the evening came in the men's 110 meter hurdles, where China's Wenjuw Xie won by a 13.23-13.26 margin of France's Pascal Martinot-Lagarde. With Americans David Oliver and Ryan Wilson in the field, few thought Xie would win, including himself. The fastest out of the blocks and strong 3-6 hurdles made all the difference, as he delighted the Chinese crowd. It seems as though China may just have a new star on their hands, replacing 2004 gold medalist Liu Xiang.

Oh, before we forget, Justin Gatlin won the men's 100m dash in 9.92, the top time in the world this year, while he beat Nesta Carter (Jamaica) by a tenth of a second. Gatlin didn't have the wind at his back, got a good start and continues to show why he could very well be the best 100m specialist in the world this season. Of course Usain Bolt has yet to start his season, so we'll see, but Gatlin continues to gain confidence every time out...and wins.

Speaking of best in the world, 30 year old Michael Tinsley continues to show why he's the best 400 meter hurdles this season, thus far. After winning the Drake Relays 400m hurdle event in a world leading time of 48.57, he came back in Shanghai Sunday evening to win in 48.77. 

World record pole vaulter Renaude Lavillenie easily won the men's pole vault with a best of 5.92m. While he missed clearing 6.03m all three times (he holds the Diamond League record of 6.02m), Lavillenie showed why he's the man to watch for the next two years. His 5.92m mark is tops in the world this outdoor season and puts him a step closer to really challenging his 6.16m world record outdoors.

Last, but certainly not least, Nigeria's Blessing Okagbare won the women's long jump and the women's 200m dash. Talk about impressive. Okagbare won the long jump in a meet record mark of 6.86m, while coming back to win the 200m in a meet record of 22.36. While it seems to happen every few years, where a world-class sprinter is also a world-class jumper, it's still rare and incredibly enjoyable to watch.