Ryan Crouser, the current world No. 1 and Olympic champion in the shot put, bested an elite field Tuesday evening at Drake Stadium to win the Delta Dental of Iowa Shot Put as part of this week's Drake Blue Oval Showcase presented by Mediacom.
 
Crouser won the event with a mark of 74-0.25 (22.56m) that was recorded on his first throw of the night. His second throw of 73-10 (22.50m) was the second best in the competition that also featured Nick Ponzio, Payton Otterdahl, Luke Warning and Josh Cinnamo.
 
"It was nice to get out here and compete. I was really happy with my first-round throw and that might be my best first-round throw ever," Crouser said. "I felt good physically. I just had trouble locking in my rhythm and amping it up out there."
 
Crouser's nearest competitor, Payton Otterdahl, also recorded his best throw on his first attempt with a season-best of 69-4.25 (21.14m). Nick Ponzio, the current No. 2 in the world, was third as he threw 68-1.5 on his final throw of the night.
 
Those five will return to Drake Stadium Saturday afternoon to compete in the Blue Oval Showcase presented by Mediacom as they try to squeeze as many competitions as possible in a truncated season.
 
"We haven't missed a day training this whole year, but we've had to be flexible and adapt," Crouser said. "If I have an opportunity to compete, I want to get as many as I can. I figured it would be good to have the opportunity to compete twice in a week."