University of Missouri
IAAF World Indoor Championships
CHRISTIAN CANTWELL, WORLD CHAMPION
3/7/2004 12:00:00 AM | Track & Field
March 7, 2004
Complete Results | USATF Release
Photos from Getty Images
Former Missouri Tiger and current undergraduate assistant track and field coach Christian Cantwell won the IAAF World Indoor Shot Put title today in Budapest, Hungary. His throw of 70 feet, 6? inches (21.49m) won him the title by just under 1? feet. The purse for winning such an event is an excess of $50,000.
The United States went a surprise 1-2 in the men's shot put event. Cantwell's teammate, Reese Hoffa, threw for a second-best 69 feet, 1? inch (21.07m).
Cantwell (Eldon, Mo.) won his first national title last week in Boston, Mass., to qualify for the world final. As a Tiger, Cantwell was a seven-time all-American and a six-time Big 12 Champion.
Cantwell's NCAA eligibility ran out after the 2003 outdoor season and has since excelled in his first season on the world scene. His throw of 70 feet, 9 inches (21.56m) in Salamanca, Spain, was his previous personal best until breaking his record two weeks ago with a mammoth throw of 72 feet, ? inch (21.95m) at the Missouri All-Comers Meet. Cantwell's first taste of big success on the world stage came at September's IAAF World Final in Athletics. Cantwell won the title in Monte Carlo, Monaco, and has since been in the top four in the world rankings. Until the world championships, Cantwell held the longest throw in the world for 2004 and now has five of the ten best throws in the world for the year.
The next goal for Cantwell is to achieve an Olympic gold medal in Greece this summer. The next few months will consist of a series of outdoor meets to help him train once again on the world scene. The ultimate qualification round for the 2003 Olympiad will be held in Sacramento, Calif., in mid-June at the USATF Olympic Trials.
More information will be forthcoming once available, to keep up, visit mutigers.com.
