John Godina

Last updated

John Godina
Personal information
BornMay 31, 1972 (1972-05-31) (age 51)
Fort Sill, Oklahoma, U.S.
Medal record
Men's athletics
Representing Flag of the United States (23px).png  United States
Olympic Games
Silver medal icon (S initial).svg 1996 Atlanta Shot put
Bronze medal icon (B initial).svg 2000 Sydney Shot put
World Championships
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 1995 Gothenburg Shot put
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 1997 Athens Shot put
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 2001 Edmonton Shot put
World Indoor Championships
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 2001 Lisbon Shot put

John Carl Godina (born May 31, 1972) is an American shot putter, whose record includes three World Championship wins and two Olympic medals. He also competes in discus. Godina was born in Fort Sill, Oklahoma.

Contents

High school years

While attending Cheyenne Central High School in Cheyenne, Wyoming, Godina was a letterman in football and outdoor track and field. He was an All-State honoree, and an All-American in both sports.

College years and Olympic Games

At college level, competing for UCLA, he won three outdoor NCAA championship victories, two in discus and one in shot put. His 1995 NCAA Outdoor shot put title was a national record with a throw of 22.00 meters (72'2.25"). In 1995, he won his first World Championship title in shot put, adding additional titles in 1997, and 2001. In the same discipline, he finished second in the 1996 Olympics and third in the 2000 Olympics. He also qualified to those same Olympics in the Discus, the first American to qualify in both since Bud Houser in 1924 [1] and he finished 8th in the 2004 Olympics in the Shot Put. [2] He retired in 2009 after suffering through injuries at the 2008 Olympic Trials. [1]

Godina is one of the most decorated shot putters in U.S. athletics history. His legacy compares well with Parry O'Brien, who won two Olympic gold medals (1952, 1956) and one silver medal (1960), placed fourth in the Tokyo Olympics in 1964, and broke the world record 17 times.

Godina was named to the Mt. SAC Relays Hall of Fame in 2010. [3] He was inducted into the UCLA Athletics Hall of Fame in 2005.

World Throws Center

John has a throwing academy in five different locations, two in California (Sacramento and San Ramon). The other three are located in Arizona (Phoenix, Mesa and Glendale). [4]

Godina trains top international athletes like Vikas Gowda, Suzy Powell and Dan Taylor. [5]

Achievements

YearCompetitionVenuePositionEventNotes
Representing the Flag of the United States (23px).png  United States
1990 World Junior Championships Plovdiv, Bulgaria 20th (q)Discus 40.88 m
1996 Olympic Games Atlanta, United States 2ndShot put 20.79 m
1997 IAAF Grand Prix Final Fukuoka, Japan 3rdDiscus65.56 m
2001 World Championships Edmonton, Canada 1stShot put 21.87 m
2004 Olympic Games Athens, Greece 9thShot put 20.19 m

Related Research Articles

Michael Lawrence Marsh is a retired American sprinter, the 1992 Olympic champion in the 200 m.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Randy Matson</span> American track and field athlete

James Randel "Randy" Matson is an American track and field athlete who mostly competed in the shot put. Matson won a silver medal at the 1964 and a gold medal at the 1968 Olympics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fortune Gordien</span> American athlete (1922–1990)

Fortune Everett Gordien was an American discus thrower and shot putter who set four world records in the discus throw. He competed in this event at the 1948, 1952 and 1956 Olympics and placed third, fourth and second, respectively. At the 1955 Pan American Games he won a gold medal in the discus and a silver in the shot put.

Seilala Maria Sua is a discus thrower from the United States. Her personal best throw is 65.90 metres, achieved in July 2000 in Sacramento, California.

Margaret "Meg" Elizabeth Stone is a retired Scottish discus thrower and Shot putter. She reached the Olympic finals at discus in Moscow 1980 (9th) and Los Angeles 1984 (5th). She also won the 1982 Commonwealth Games title. Her discus best of 67.48 metres has stood as the British record since 1981, while her shot put best of 18.99 metres has stood as the Scottish record since 1983.

John Brenner is a retired shot putter from the United States. He was the 1986 and 1987 United States champion in the shot put.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roland Nilsson (shot putter)</span> Swedish shot putter and discus thrower

Fritz Roland Nilsson was an athlete who was a member of the Swedish Olympic teams in 1948 and 1952. He was also a member of the Michigan Wolverines men's track and field team. He won six Big Ten Conference championships in the shot put and five event championships at the Penn Relays.

Andrew Bloom is an American former Olympic shot putter, two-time national indoor shot put champion, World University Games shot put champion, and NCAA champion in both discus and shot put.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ryan Whiting</span> American shot putter (b. 1986)

Ryan Keith Whiting is an American track and field athlete who competes in the shot put and has a personal record of 22.28 meters outdoors and 22.35 meters indoors. His biggest international senior success to date is first place at the 2012 World Indoor Championships. He represented the United States at the 2011 World Championships in Athletics, 2013 World Championships in Athletics, 2014 IAAF World Indoor Championships and the 2012 London Olympics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jack Torrance (athlete)</span> American football player

John Torrance was an American shot putter and American football player. Torrance broke the shot put world record several times in 1934, his eventual best mark of 17.40 m remaining unbeaten until 1948. At the 1936 Summer Olympics he placed fifth.

Filip Mihaljević is a Croatian discus thrower and shot putter. He became European champion in shot put in 2022. He also won bronze medals at the 2016 World Indoor Championships and 2021 European Indoor Championships.

Simon Alexander Williams is a male British former shot putter and discus thrower. He was the gold medallist in the shot put at the 1990 Commonwealth Games. He also represented Great Britain in the discus at the 1991 World Championships in Athletics and the 1992 Summer Olympics.

David Lorne Steen is a Canadian former track and field athlete who specialised in the shot put. He was a two-time gold medallist in the event at the Commonwealth Games in 1966 and 1970, breaking games records both times. He had won the bronze medal at the 1962 event. His personal record was 19.21 m, set in 1970.

Shelbi JoDae Vaughan is an American track and field athlete whose specialty is the discus throw.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">DeAnna Price</span> American hammer thrower (born 1993)

DeAnna Marie Price is an American track and field athlete competing primarily in the hammer throw. Price's personal best in the hammer is 80.31 m (263 ft 5 in), the American record, set at the 2021 US Olympic trials. The throw ranked her as the #2 women's thrower in history.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joe Kovacs</span> American track and field athlete

Joseph Mathias Kovacs is an American track and field athlete who competes in the shot put and has a personal record of 23.23 meters outdoors and 22.05 meters indoors. He won gold medals at the 2015 and 2019 World Championships. He won silver medals at the 2017 World Championships, 2016 and 2020 Summer Olympics. His personal best of 23.23 metres makes him the second best competitor all-time in the shot put event.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ryan Crouser</span> American shot putter, discus thrower (born 1992)

Ryan Crouser is an American track and field athlete who competes in the shot put and discus. He specializes in the shot put, in which he is a two-time Olympic gold medalist and a three-time World Champion. He holds the world record in the shot put, both indoors and outdoors. He set the outdoor world record at 23.56 meters in May 2023, improving upon his previous record of 23.37 m from July 2021. He has held the indoor record of 22.82 m since January 2021.

Nicholas Scarvelis is an American-born Greek former athlete. He represented Greece at the 2016 Olympics throwing the shot put. Previously he represented the United States at the 2012 World Junior Championships. His sister is Stamatia Skarvelis

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Maggie Ewen</span> American athlete (born 1994)

Maggie Ewen is an American shot putter. Maggie Ewen earned bronze medal when she threw the discus 59.00 m in Toronto at 2018 NACAC Championships, placed fourth in the shot put at 2019 World Athletics Championships and competed in the women's hammer throw at the 2017 World Championships in Athletics. Ewen set collegiate outdoor records in shot put and hammer.

Arturo "Art" Venegas is a former track and field coach, specializing in the throwing events. During his coaching career, Venegas led 63 athletes to conference titles, and he coached 33 throwers to NCAA championships. The U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) said that he "left an indelible mark on the sport of track & field for over 40 years".

References

  1. 1 2 "Two-time Olympic medalist John Godina retires".
  2. "John Godina Bio, Stats, and Results | Olympics at Sports-Reference.com". Archived from the original on September 22, 2013. Retrieved July 12, 2013.
  3. "Mt. SAC Relays - Hall of Fame". Archived from the original on April 30, 2007.
  4. "World Throws Center Locations". World Throws Center.
  5. "USA Track & Field - Dan Taylor". Archived from the original on December 20, 2019.