The men's discus throw competition at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens was held at the Olympic Stadium on 21–23 August. It was originally planned to hold the discus throw at the Ancient Olympia Stadium, but it was discovered that the field was not large enough to accommodate the range of modern discus throwers, and would have posed a danger to spectators. As such, it was decided to move the discus throw and to hold the shot put at the ancient stadium, despite the fact that the shot put was not contested at the Ancient Olympic Games. Thirty-nine athletes from 26 nations competed.
The men's discus throw event at the 2000 Summer Olympics as part of the athletics program was held at the Olympic Stadium on Sunday, 24 September and Monday, 25 September. Forty-five athletes from 28 nations competed. The event was won by Virgilijus Alekna of Lithuania, the nation's second victory in the men's discus throw. Lars Riedel of Germany took silver, becoming the 13th man to win multiple discus throw medals. Frantz Kruger earned South Africa's first medal in the event with his bronze.
The men's shot put at the Athens 2004 Summer Olympics was held on August 18, 2004, at the Ancient Olympia Stadium in Olympia, Greece. It was originally planned to hold the discus throw at this venue, but it was discovered that the field was insufficiently large to accommodate the range of modern discus throwers, and would have posed a danger to spectators. As such, it was decided instead to hold the shot put at the site, despite the fact that the shot put was not contested at the Ancient Olympic Games. All distances are given in metres. Thirty-nine athletes from 26 nations competed.
The men's discus throw was an event at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia. There were 40 competitors from 30 nations. The maximum number of athletes per nation had been set at 3 since the 1930 Olympic Congress. The final was held on July 31, 1996. The event was won by Lars Riedel of Germany, the nation's first victory in the men's discus throw. Belarus won two medals in its debut, with Vladimir Dubrovshchik earning silver and Vasiliy Kaptyukh taking bronze.
The final of the men's discus throw event at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, Spain was held on August 5, 1992. There were 32 participating athletes from 24 nations. The maximum number of athletes per nation had been set at 3 since the 1930 Olympic Congress. The top 12 and ties, and all those reaching 63.00 metres advanced to the final. The event was won by Romas Ubartas of Lithuania, a victory for the nation in its debut appearance in the men's discus throw. Jürgen Schult took silver, the first medal for unified Germany. Roberto Moya earned Cuba's first men's discus throw medal since 1980 with his bronze. Ubartas and Schult became the 11th and 12th men to win multiple discus throw medals; they had both represented different nations (the Soviet Union and East Germany, respectively, in 1988 and had finished one-two then as well, though in the opposite order.
The men's high jump was an event at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, Spain. There were 43 participating athletes from 27 nations. The maximum number of athletes per nation had been set at 3 since the 1930 Olympic Congress. The qualification mark was set at 2.29 metres. The event was won by Javier Sotomayor of Cuba, the nation's first victory in the men's high jump. Patrik Sjöberg of Sweden earned silver, becoming the first man to win a third medal in the event, though he never won gold. Sweden was only the third country to have three consecutive podium appearances. A three-way tie for third could not be resolved by countback, so bronze medals were awarded to Tim Forsyth, Artur Partyka, and Hollis Conway.
The men's hammer throw at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Korea had an entry list of 30 competitors from 16 nations, with two qualifying groups before the final (12) took place on Monday September 26, 1988. The maximum number of athletes per nation had been set at 3 since the 1930 Olympic Congress. In the final round the eight highest-ranked competitors after three rounds qualified for the final three throws to decide the medals. The event was won by Sergey Litvinov of the Soviet Union, the nation's sixth victory in the event. The Soviet team completed the medal sweep, with Yuriy Sedykh taking silver and Jüri Tamm bronze. It was the Soviets' third medal sweep in four Games, with only the boycotted 1984 Games missing. The 1988 team was the same as the 1980 squad, with Litvinov and Sedykh trading places. Litvinov and Tamm were the ninth and tenth men to earn multiple medals in the hammer throw, while Sedykh became the fourth to win three medals; his two golds and a silver trailed only John Flanagan's three gold medals in Olympic success.
The men's discus throw event at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Korea had an entry list of 29 competitors from 20 nations, with two qualifying groups before the final (12) took place on Saturday October 1, 1988. The maximum number of athletes per nation had been set at 3 since the 1930 Olympic Congress. The event was won by Jürgen Schult of East Germany, the nation's first victory in the men's discus throw and first medal since 1976. Romas Ubartas of the Soviet Union took silver, while Rolf Danneberg of West Germany earned bronze. Danneberg was the 10th man to win multiple discus throw medals, adding to his 1984 gold. For the first time, the United States competed in the event but did not make the podium.
The men's discus throw at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, California had an entry list of 20 competitors from 14 nations, with two qualifying groups before the final (12) took place on August 10, 1984. The maximum number of athletes per nation had been set at 3 since the 1930 Olympic Congress. The event was won by Rolf Danneberg of West Germany, the nation's first medal in the men's discus throw and the first victory by any German athlete in the event. Mac Wilkins and John Powell of the United States won silver and bronze; they were the eighth and ninth men to win multiple discus throw medals. The United States continued its 19-Games streak of earning at least one medal every time it appeared, missing the podium only in the boycotted 1980 Games; however, this would be the last Games in that streak—and, in fact, the last medals the United States would earn in the event through at least 2020.
The men's hammer throw was an event at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, California. There were 23 participating athletes from 13 nations. The maximum number of athletes per nation had been set at 3 since the 1930 Olympic Congress. The eight highest-ranked competitors after three rounds qualified for the final three throws to decide the medals. The qualification mark was set at 72.00 metres.
The men's discus throw event at the 2008 Summer Olympics took place on 16–19 August at the Beijing National Stadium. Thirty-seven athletes from 29 nations competed. The event was won by Gerd Kanter of Estonia, the nation's first victory in the men's discus throw. Piotr Małachowski took silver to give Poland its first medal in the event. Lithuanian thrower Virgilijus Alekna's bronze made him the third man to win three medals in the sport, adding to his gold medals from 2000 and 2004.
The men's hammer throw event at the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow, Soviet Union had an entry list of 17 competitors from 13 nations, with one qualifying group before the final (12) took place on 31 July 1980. Top 12 and ties and all those reaching 72.00 metres advanced to the final. The maximum number of athletes per nation had been set at 3 since the 1930 Olympic Congress. The event was won by Yuriy Sedykh of the Soviet Union, repeating as Olympic champion. He was the eighth man to win multiple medals in the event and third to have at least two gold medals. Just as in 1976, Sedykh led the Soviet team to a medal sweep, with Sergey Litvinov taking silver and Jüri Tamm bronze. The gold medal was the Soviet Union's third consecutive and fifth overall in the men's hammer throw, second all-time to the United States's seven.
The men's high jump event at the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow, Soviet Union, had an entry list of 30 competitors from 19 nations. The maximum number of athletes per nation had been set at 3 since the 1930 Olympic Congress. The final was held on Friday 1 August 1980. The event was won by Gerd Wessig of East Germany, the first gold medal by a German athlete in the men's high jump. It was also the first time a world record in the high jump had been set at the Olympics. Jörg Freimuth took bronze, making East Germany the third nation to have two medalists in the event in the same Games. Defending champion Jacek Wszoła of Poland took silver, becoming the fourth man to win two high jump medals and matching Valeriy Brumel for best results at one gold and one silver. Through the 2016 Games, Wszoła, Brumel, and Javier Sotomayor remain the most successful Olympic men's high jumpers; no high jumper has won two gold medals, or one gold and two silvers. Due at least in part to the American-led boycott, the United States' streak of making the podium in every Olympic men's high jump event to date ended.
The men's shot put event at the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow, Soviet Union had an entry list of 16 competitors from 11 nations. The maximum number of athletes per nation had been set at 3 since the 1930 Olympic Congress. The final was held on Wednesday 30 July 1980, with the qualifying round staged two days earlier in the Lenin Stadium. The top twelve and ties, and all those reaching 19.60 metres advanced to the final. The event was won by Vladimir Kiselyov of the Soviet Union, the nation's first victory in the men's shot put. The Soviet Union became only the third nation to reach the podium in consecutive Games in the event, as East Germany became the second to reach a three-Games streak on the podium as Udo Beyer took bronze. Beyer and Aleksandr Baryshnikov became the ninth and tenth men to win multiple medals in the shot put.
The men's shot put event at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, United States had an entry list of 19 competitors from 13 nations. The maximum number of athletes per nation had been set at 3 since the 1930 Olympic Congress. The final was held on August 11, 1984. The event was won by Alessandro Andrei of Italy, the nation's first medal in the men's shot put. Michael Carter and Dave Laut of the United States took silver and bronze, respectively, putting Americans back on the podium for the first time since 1972.
The men's discus throw event was part of the track and field athletics programme at the 1948 Summer Olympics. Twenty-eight athletes from 18 nations competed. The maximum number of athletes per nation had been set at 3 since the 1930 Olympic Congress. The competition was held on August 2. The final was won by Adolfo Consolini of Italy. It was the nation's first victory in the men's discus throw; Italy had previously taken bronze in 1936. Giuseppe Tosi earned silver to put Italy in the top two places. Fortune Gordien of the United States won bronze, keeping the Americans on the podium in each appearance of the men's discus throw to date.
The men's discus throw was a competition at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, United Kingdom. The event was held at the Olympic Stadium on 6–7 August. Forty-one athletes from 24 nations competed. The event was won by Robert Harting of Germany, the nation's first victory in the men's discus throw since 1996 and second overall. Ehsan Haddadi earned Iran's first medal in the event with his silver. Gerd Kanter of Estonia became the 15th man to win multiple medals in the event, adding a bronze to his 2008 gold. Virgilijus Alekna of Lithuania narrowly missed being the second man to win four medals in the event, finishing fourth.
The men's discus throw event at the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal, Quebec, Canada had an entry list of 30 competitors from 20 nations, with two qualifying groups before the final (15) took place on Sunday July 25, 1976. The maximum number of athletes per nation had been set at 3 since the 1930 Olympic Congress. The top twelve and ties, and all those reaching 60.00 metres advanced to the final. The qualification round was held in Saturday July 24, 1976. The event was won by Mac Wilkins of the United States, the nation's 13th victory in the men's discus throw. Wolfgang Schmidt took silver, matching East Germany's best result to date in the event. John Powell gave the United States a second medal in the competition with his bronze. Czechoslovakia's three-Games medal streak, all won by Ludvík Daněk, ended as Daněk finished ninth; the American streak reached 18 Games.
The men's discus throw competition at the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City, Mexico took place on October 14–15. Twenty-seven athletes from 19 nations competed. The maximum number of athletes per nation had been set at 3 since the 1930 Olympic Congress. The event was won by Al Oerter of the United States, the nation's fifth consecutive and 12th overall victory in the men's discus throw. Oerter finished his run of four victories in the event, the first person to win four consecutive gold medals in any individual Olympic event. For the first time during Oerter's reign, he was the only American on the podium as Lothar Milde of East Germany and Ludvík Daněk of Czechoslovakia took the other two medals. Daněk was the seventh man to win at least two discus throw medals; Oerter remains the only one to win four.
The men's discus throw competition at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, was held at the Estádio Olímpico João Havelange on 12–13 August. Thirty-five athletes from 24 nations competed. Germany's Christoph Harting succeeded his brother Robert Harting to the Olympic title. "It was the first time in Olympic history, in any sport, that brothers succeeded each other as Olympic champions in the same individual event." It was also the nation's third victory in the event. Poland's Piotr Małachowski took the silver medal ahead of another German, Daniel Jasinski. Małachowski had also won silver eight years before, making him the 16th man to win multiple medals in the discus throw.
