Kurt Roberts (born February 20, 1988) is an American

track and field Track and field (or athletics in British English) is a sport that includes Competition#Sports, athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name used in North America is derived from where the sport takes place, a ru ...

athlete who competes in the

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 ...

. He set his personal record for the event in 2014, throwing to take second at the

USA Indoor Track and Field Championships The USA Indoor Track and Field Championships is an annual indoor track and field competition organized by USA Track & Field, which serves as the American national championships for the sport. In years which feature a World Indoor Championships i ...

. He was a late starter in the sport and competed in

NCAA Division II NCAA Division II (D-II) is the intermediate-level division of competition in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). It offers an alternative to both the larger and better-funded Division I and to the scholarship-free environment ...

competition with

Ashland University Ashland University is a private university in Ashland, Ohio, United States. The university consists of a main campus and several off-campus centers throughout central and northern Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern U ...

. He won once at the

NCAA Men's Division II Outdoor Track and Field Championships The NCAA Division II men's outdoor track and field championships (known as the NCAA College Division outdoor track and field championships between 1963 and 1972) are contested at an annual track meet hosted by the National Collegiate Athletic Asso ...

and two titles at the NCAA DII Indoor Championships. His performance of in 2010 is the best by any NCAA Division II athlete. He was the gold medallist at the

2010 NACAC Under-23 Championships in Athletics The 6th NACAC Under-23 Championships in Athletics were held in Miramar, Florida, United States, at the Ansin Sports Complex on July 9–11, 2010. A detailed report on the results was given. Medal summary Detailed results can be found on t ...

Biography

Early life and college

Born in

Lancaster, Ohio Lancaster ( ) is a city in Fairfield County, Ohio, and its county seat. The population was 40,552 at the 2020 United States census, making it List of municipalities in Ohio, Ohio's 30th largest city, having surpassed Warren, Ohio, Warren and Fin ...

,Lewis, Tom (2010-03-05)
Pixler, Braun, Pierre, Roberts, Miller and Thomas Among Division II Region Award Winners

USTFCCCA The U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) is a New Orleans–based non-profit professional association representing men's and women's cross country and track & field coaches in the United States. The organization incl ...

. Retrieved on 2014-03-06. he attended Athens High School and began to compete in the shot put around the age of sixteen. He progressively became more serious about the sport as he got older. He attended

and competed for the Ashland Eagles in

. In his first year, he was runner-up indoors and out in the

Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference The Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division II level. The GLIAC was founded in June 1972. Its eleven member ...

(GLIAC) and managed third place at the

with a throw of . He improved further the following year to win both GLIAC titles as well as the NCAA DII outdoor title,Kurt Roberts
Tilastopaja. Retrieved on 2014-03-06. setting a personal record and seasonal division best of . Roberts achieved the best mark ever for an NCAA Division II athlete when he won the NCAA DII Indoor title with a put of – a mark which ranked him second among American collegians that season. He was only third at the NCAA outdoor meet. He made his national debut at the

2010 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships The 2010 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships were held at Drake Stadium, Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa on June 23–27, 2010. In order to boost the visibility of this event, USATF sponsored a member appreciation tent at the event and ...

, taking 15th place. He also made his international debut and won a gold medal at the

. He retained his NCAA indoor title the following year, but failed to record a valid mark at the outdoor meet. He threw over twenty metres for the first time at the beginning of 2011 and his mark of ranked him in the top ten nationally that year.

Professional

Roberts began to shot put professionally in 2012. He competed at the

and placed eighth. Outdoors he rapidly improved, throwing and then (the latter performance placed him tenth in the world in the event that year). His put of at the 2012 United States Olympic Trials did not bring him a place on the American Olympic team, but his ranking of fifth overall marked him out as one of the best throwers in the country. At those trials a photograph of him competing, taken mid-throw by Matt Slocum for the

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American not-for-profit organization, not-for-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association, and produces news reports that are dist ...

, gained widespread coverage due to his unusually distorted face and gruff features. This raised the profile of the athlete, who was still supporting himself by working as 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 at an elementary school in Ohio. Still without sponsor, he took third place at the 2013 USA Indoor Championships, throwing to place behind Ryan Whiting and Cory Martin. Outdoors, he won at the Mt. SAC Relays meet and had a season's best of in May. He peaked too early, as he failed to record a mark at the

2013 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships The 2013 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships was held at Drake Stadium in Des Moines, Iowa. Organised by USA Track and Field, the four-day competition took place June 20–23 in conjunction with the USA Junior Outdoor Track & Field Champion ...

. Roberts improved his personal record in February at the 2014 USA Indoor Championships – he took the lead with a large throw of , but was then beaten into second place by Whiting, who set a lifetime best himself. This ranked Roberts second in the world at the point he was chosen to represent his country at the

2014 IAAF World Indoor Championships The 2014 IAAF World Indoor Championships in Athletics was the fifteenth edition of the international indoor track and field competition, organised by the IAAF. The event was held between 7–9 March 2014 at the Ergo Arena in Sopot, Poland. Prepar ...

.Turnbull, Simon & Jalava, Mirko (2014-03-04)
Men's events preview – IAAF World Indoor Championships Sopot 2014
IAAF. Retrieved on 2014-03-06.

Personal records

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 ...

(outdoors) – (2012) *

(outdoors) – (2014) *

Weight throw Weight throw (or Weight for distance) is a traditional strength sport and throwing event derived from ancient Scottish Highland games. Unlike its other counterpart, the Weight over bar which involves a stationary pendulum like swing for height, ...

(indoors) – (2009)

International competitions

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Roberts, Kurt Living people 1988 births American male shot putters Sportspeople from Lancaster, Ohio Ashland Eagles men's track and field athletes USA Indoor Track and Field Championships winners Diamond League winners