Germán Luján Lauro (born 2 April 1984) is an Argentine

shot put The shot put is a track-and-field event involving "putting" (throwing) a heavy spherical Ball (sports), ball—the ''shot''—as far as possible. For men, the sport has been a part of the Olympic Games, modern Olympics since their 1896 Summer Olym ...

ter and

discus throw The discus throw (), also known as disc throw, is a track and field sport in which the participant athlete throws an oblate spheroid weight (object), weight called a discus in an attempt to mark a further distance than other competitors. It is a ...

er. He is the South American record holder in the shot put both indoors and outdoors with marks of 21.04 m and 21.26 m, respectively. His personal best in the discus is 63.55 metres. Lauro placed sixth in the shot put at the

2012 IAAF World Indoor Championships The 2012 IAAF World Indoor Championships in Athletics was the 14th edition of the global-level indoor track and field competition and was held between March 9–11, 2012 at the Ataköy Athletics Arena in Istanbul, Turkey. It was the first of fo ...

and the

2012 Olympic Games The 2012 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012, were an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

. He represented his country at the

World Championships in Athletics The World Athletics Championships, known as the IAAF World Championships in Athletics until 2019, are a biennial athletics competition organized by World Athletics, formerly International Association of Athletics Federations. Alongside Olympic ...

in 2007, 2009 and 2011, although he did not reach the finals. He also competed at the

2008 Beijing Olympics The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and officially branded as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes fro ...

and is a two-time participant at the

Pan American Games The Pan American Games, known as the Pan Am Games, is a continental multi-sport event in the Americas. It features thousands of athletes participating in competitions to win different summer sports. It is held among athletes from nations of th ...

. He gradually emerged at the regional level, winning South American youth, junior and under-23 titles. He reached the top of his field at continental level in 2006 with a

gold medal A gold medal is a medal awarded for highest achievement in a non-military field. Its name derives from the use of at least a fraction of gold in form of plating or alloying in its manufacture. Since the eighteenth century, gold medals have b ...

in the shot put at the

South American Championships in Athletics The South American Championships in Athletics is a biennial athletics event organized by CONSUDATLE. The first edition in 1919 was competed between only two countries (Chile and Uruguay Uruguay, officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay, ...

. He extended his shot put reign with four wins from 2006 to 2011 and won two discus gold medals (2007 and 2009) before taking silver in 2011. He began to make an impact at a greater regional level from 2010 onwards, taking a shot put bronze at the

2011 Pan American Games The 2011 Pan American Games, officially the XVI Pan American Games () and commonly known as Guadalajara 2011, were an international multi-sport event held from October 14–30, 2011, in Guadalajara, Mexico. Some events were held in the nearby c ...

and two gold medals at the

2012 Ibero-American Championships in Athletics The 2012 Ibero-American Championships in Athletics (''Spanish: XV Campeonato Iberoamericano de Atletismo'') was the fifteenth edition of the international athletics competition between Ibero-American nations. It was held at the Polideportivo Máxi ...

. In 2010 he won the

Konex Award Konex Foundation Awards, or simply Konex Awards, are cultural awards from the Konex Foundation honouring Argentine cultural personalities. History and purpose Konex Awards are granted by the Konex Foundation, created in 1980 in Argentina. The p ...

as one of the five best Athletes of the last decade in Argentina.

Career

Early career

Germán Lauro was born on 2 April 1984 in

Trenque Lauquen Trenque Lauquen is a city in the west of the province of Buenos Aires, Argentina, from Buenos Aires City and from the border with the province of La Pampa, on the intersection of National Routes 5 and 33. Trenque Lauquen is the largest city o ...

in Argentina's

Buenos Aires Province Buenos Aires, officially the Buenos Aires Province, is the largest and most populous Provinces of Argentina, Argentine province. It takes its name from the city of Buenos Aires, the capital of the country, which used to be part of the province an ...

. He is a member of the local sports club, Foot Ball Club Argentino. He began training with Carlos Llera, a

physical education Physical education is an academic subject taught in schools worldwide, encompassing Primary education, primary, Secondary education, secondary, and sometimes tertiary education. It is often referred to as Phys. Ed. or PE, and in the United Stat ...

teacher, while at high school in his home town. In his first continental competition he won both the

and

events at the 2000 South American Youth Championships in Athletics. He also placed seventh in the discus in the Junior Championships that year. His first junior medal came the following year at the

2001 Pan American Junior Athletics Championships The 11th Pan American Junior Athletics Championships were held at the Centro de Alto Rendimiento Deportivo Pedro Candioti in Santa Fe, Argentina Santa Fe de la Vera Cruz (; usually called just Santa Fe, lit. "Holy Faith") is the capital city o ...

, where he was the discus

silver medal A silver medal, in sports and other similar areas involving competition, is a medal made of, or plated with, silver awarded to the second-place finisher, or runner-up, of contests or competitions such as the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, ...

list behind

Héctor Hurtado Héctor Hugo Hurtado Salazar (born 21 September 1975) is a former Colombian football striker who last played for América de Cali. When he retired from his career as a professional player in 2014 he became a sports technician. Career On Apr ...

. He was seventh in the shot put at the 2001 South American Junior Championships in Athletics and a finalist at the

2001 World Youth Championships in Athletics The 2001 World Youth Championships in Athletics was the second edition of the IAAF World Youth Championships in Athletics, World Youth Championships in Athletics. It was held in Debrecen, Hungary 12–15 July 2001. Results Boys Girls Medal ta ...

. He competed for Argentina in the discus at the

2002 World Junior Championships in Athletics The 2002 World Junior Championships in Athletics were held in Kingston, Jamaica from July 16 to July 21, 2002. Men's results Women's results Medal table Participation According to an unofficial count through an unofficial result list, ...

, but didn't make the final round, although he was the shot put and discus runner-up at the South American Juniors (second to Brazil's Gustavo de Mendonça both times).South American Junior Championships 2002
. World Junior Athletics History. Retrieved on 19 May 2013. In his final junior year he placed fifth in the discus and twelfth in the shot put at the

2003 Pan American Junior Athletics Championships The 12th Pan American Junior Athletics Championships were held in Bridgetown, Barbados at the Barbados National Stadium, National Stadium on 18–20 July 2003. Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt had the outstanding performance equalling the 200m World ...

. He managed only fourth in the shot and third in the discus at the 2003 South American Junior Championships in Athletics.

First senior medals

He achieved little progress in his first senior year, with his sole medal (a bronze) coming in the discus at the 2004 South American Under-23 Championships in Athletics. He improved his shot put best to 18.17 metres the next year and placed fourth in the event at the

2005 South American Championships in Athletics The 2005 in athletics (track and field), 2005 South American Championships in Athletics were held at the Estadio Olímpico Pascual Guerrero in Cali, Colombia from July 21 to July 24, 2005. Detailed day-by-day reports can be found on the IAAF websi ...

.ATLETISMO: EL GRAN MOMENTO DE GERMAN LAURO Y SUS MEJORES LANZAMIENTOS EN BALA
. Deporte L'Auquen (27 April 2013). Retrieved on 22 May 2013. The 2006 season saw Lauro establish himself in the shot put at the senior level as he began to make effective use of the spin technique.Biscayart, Eduardo (13 November 2006)
Brazil best at South American U-23
IAAF. Retrieved on 22 May 2013. After a fourth-place finish at the 2006 Ibero-American Championships in Athletics he broke the Argentine record for the event with a throw of 19.46 m. At the 2006 South American Championships in Athletics he had a no throw in the discus but excelled in the shot put, taking the

with a mark of 18.97 m. A South American under-23 record of 19.78 m came at that year's South American U23 Championships, where he won both the shot put and discus titles. He also extended his personal best in the discus to 60.30 m, clearing sixty metres for the first time.German Lauro
IAAF. Retrieved on 22 May 2013. He expanded his regional dominance to the discus at the

2007 South American Championships in Athletics The 2007 South American Championships in Athletics were held at the Estádio Ícaro de Castro Mello in São Paulo, Brazil from 7 June to 9 June 2007. A total of 44 events were contested, of which 22 were by male and 22 by female athletes. Continu ...

, winning both the shot put and discus gold medals. He was a finalist in both events at the

2007 Pan American Games The 2007 Pan American Games, officially known as the XV Pan American Games () and commonly known as Rio 2007, were a major Americas, continental multi-sport event that took place in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from July 13 to 29, 2007. A total of ...

, coming fifth in the shot put and fourth in the discus. His global senior debut followed at the

2007 World Championships in Athletics The 11th World Championships in Athletics, () under the auspices of the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF), were held at Nagai Stadium in Osaka, Japan from 24 August to 2 September 2007. 200 of the IAAF's 212 member feder ...

, although he was eliminated in the first round. A throw of 61.78 m in

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires, controlled by the government of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Argentina. It is located on the southwest of the Río de la Plata. Buenos Aires is classified as an Alpha− glob ...

marked a season-ending personal best in the discus. He began 2008 in strong form, throwing a national record of 19.88 m for the shot put in February. A bronze medal in the event followed at the

2008 Ibero-American Championships in Athletics The 2008 Ibero-American Championships in Athletics (''Spanish: XIII Campeonato Iberoamericano de Atletismo''), was an athletics competition which was held at the Estadio Tierra de Campeones in Iquique, Chile from June 13 to the 15th. A total of f ...

, where he was also fourth in the discus. On his Olympic debut at the 2008 Beijing Games he was knocked out in the qualifying rounds.

Further regional titles

Lauro defended his shot put and discus titles at the

2009 South American Championships in Athletics The 2009 South American Championships in Athletics (Spanish: ''2009 Campeonatos Sudamericanos'') was the forty sixth edition of the tournament and was held between 19 and 21 June in Lima, Peru. Brazil dominated the tournament, easily finishing w ...

, having his season's best marks of 19.20 m and 60.41 m there. He gained selection for both events at the

2009 World Championships in Athletics The 12th IAAF World Championships in Athletics () were held in Berlin, Germany from 15 to 23 August 2009. The majority of events took place in the Olympiastadion, while the marathon and racewalking events started and finished at the Brandenbu ...

, but did not make the final in either event. With few major international events in 2010, his focus that year was the

Ibero-American Championships The Ibero-American Championships in Athletics (Spanish: ''Campeonato Iberoamericano de Atletismo'') is a biennial athletics competition for athletes representing Ibero-American countries as well as a number of other Spanish- or Portuguese-spea ...

. He was fourth in the discus but reached new distances in the shot put event, taking the

with a significant improvement to 20.43 m. He was only beaten by Marco Fortes in the last series of throws. The

2011 South American Championships in Athletics The 2011 South American Championships in Athletics were the 47th edition of the South American Championships in Athletics, South American Championships, organised under the supervision of the CONSUDATLE. They were held at the CeNARD, National Cent ...

was hosted in his home capital Buenos Aires and he defended his shot put title on the first day of competition. Lauro was dethroned in the discus, however, as he finished runner-up to Brazil's Ronald Julião. He represented Argentina in the first round of the shot put at the

2011 World Championships in Athletics The 13th IAAF World Championships in Athletics () was an international athletics competition that was held in Daegu, South Korea. It started on 27 August 2011 and finished on 4 September 2011. The United States topped the medal standings in the ...

, but the peak of his season came at the

, where he won the

bronze medal A bronze medal in sports and other similar areas involving competition is a medal made of bronze awarded to the third-place finisher of contests or competitions such as the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, etc. The outright winner receives ...

with a throw of 20.41 m.

South American records

Lauro took the indoor circuit for the first time at the start of 2012. He had national indoor records of 19.86 m, then 19.89 m. A South American indoor record of 20.40 m followed in the first round of the

and he finished sixth in the final round – the best global placing of his career at that point. In the outdoor season he threw a national record of 20.43 m in Mar de Plata and claimed a shot put/discus double at the 2010 Ibero-American Championships in Athletics, which included a discus best of 63.55 m. This qualified him for the events at the

2012 London Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012, were an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

and in the Olympic shot put he threw 20.75 m in qualifying before hurling a personal best of 20.84 m in the final to finish in sixth place. He performed less well in the discus, finishing 37th in qualifying. He improved his shot put best further at the start of the next season with marks of 20.89 m and 20.98 m in Argentina. At the Doha leg of the 2013 Diamond League he threw a South American record of 21.26 metres, taking second place in the shot put.Brilliant start for Diamond League
Moscow 2013. Retrieved on 19 May 2013.

Personal bests

*Shot put: 21.26 m –

Doha Doha ( ) is the capital city and main financial hub of Qatar. Located on the Persian Gulf coast in the east of the country, north of Al Wakrah and south of Al Khor (city), Al Khor and Lusail, it is home to most of the country's population. It ...

, 10 May 2013 *Discus throw: 63.55 m –

Barquisimeto Barquisimeto (; ) is a city in Venezuela. Barquisimeto is located in the Central-Western Region, Venezuela. It is the capital of the state of Lara (state), Lara and head of Iribarren Municipality. It is an important urban, industrial, commercial a ...

, 8 June 2012

Achievements

References

External links

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Lauro, German 1984 births Living people Argentine male discus throwers Argentine male shot putters Athletes from Buenos Aires Olympic athletes for Argentina Athletes (track and field) at the 2008 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 2012 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 2016 Summer Olympics Pan American Games bronze medalists for Argentina Pan American Games bronze medalists in athletics (track and field) Athletes (track and field) at the 2007 Pan American Games Athletes (track and field) at the 2011 Pan American Games Athletes (track and field) at the 2015 Pan American Games Medalists at the 2011 Pan American Games Medalists at the 2015 Pan American Games South American Games gold medalists for Argentina South American Games silver medalists for Argentina South American Games bronze medalists for Argentina South American Games medalists in athletics Competitors at the 2002 South American Games Competitors at the 2006 South American Games Competitors at the 2014 South American Games World Athletics Championships athletes for Argentina 21st-century Argentine sportsmen