Justin Anlezark

In Beijing Justin Anlezark joined countryman Scott Martin in the shot put, making it the first Olympics since Melbourne in 1956 that Australia was represented by two male shot putters.

A solid opening throw (19.91m) put Justin in a strong position to make the final of the Olympics. However, unable to improve on that mark, he exited the competition in the qualifying round, finishing ninth in group B and 16th overall.

Competition Stats

Australian Championships

Shot put: 1996 – 1st (U20), 1997 – 1st (U20) 2nd (open), 1998 – 1st (open) 1st (CGT), 2000 – 1st (open) 1st (OGT), 2001 – 1st, 2002 – 1st, 2003 – 1st, 2004 – 1st, 2007 – 2nd (1st Australian), 2008 – 1st, 2009 – 1st
Discus: 1996 – 1st (open)

International Championships

Commonwealth Games: 1998 – shot 7th (18.44m), 2002 – shot 1st (20.91m)
Olympic Games: 2000 – shot qual round (18.59m), 2004 – shot 7th (20.31m), 2008 – shot qual round (19.91m)
World Cup: 1998 – shot 7th (18.26m), 2002 – 2nd (20.77m)
• World junior championships: 1994 – shot 12th (15.67m), discus qual round (45.18m); 1996 – shot 2nd (18.21m), discus qual round (48.70m)
World championships: 2001 – shot qual round (18.70m), 2003 – 4th (20.61m), 2009 – Shot put qualifying round 10th (19.94)
World indoor championships: 2003 – shot put 5th (20.65m)

Annual Progression – Shot Put

1993 14.75m
1994 16.10m
1995 17.25m
1996 18.21m
1997 18.56m
1998 19.36m
1999 18.49m
2000 20.35m
2001 20.14m
2002 20.91m
2003 20.96m
2004 20.79m
2005 DNC
2006 19.97m
2007 19.76m
2008 20.53m
2009 20.39m

Events / Personal Bests

Discus throw: 59.10m – Brisbane, 16/02/07
Shot put: 20.96m – Brisbane, 5/04/03

Records

National record – shot put: 20.96m – Brisbane, 5/04/03
National record – shot put (indoors): 20.69m
Commonwealth Games record – shot put: 20.91m – Manchester (GBR), 31/07/02

Sporting Career

1987 – Began competing at age 11.
1994 – Competed in his first world junior championships, placed 12th and was the youngest shot put athlete to make the final.
1996 – 1999 – Entered his second world junior championships ranked No. 2 in Australia and led the competition until German Ralf Bartels took the title on his last throw. Continued to improve in 1997 and 1998 before injury kept him from competing in 1999.
2000 – Broke John Minns’ Australian record during the Grand Prix Series and was selected on the Australian team for the 2000 Olympics, becoming the first Australian male to contest the shot put at the Olympics for 40 years. Didn’t qualify for the final, despite breaking the Australian record three times in as many days on the Gold Coast a week before.
2001 – Claimed his fourth national shot put title.
2002 – Won Commonwealth Games in Manchester with a PB and a Commonwealth Games record. Australia’s inaugural shot put gold in a major championship. In September at the World Cup he took the silver medal throwing 20.77m.
2003 – At the 2003 world championships in Paris, Justin finished fourth – the best ever result by an Australian male in the throws at a world championships or Olympics. He left immediately to be with his wife who was due to give birth.
2004 – 2005 – Won the Telstra Olympic trials and his sixth national shot put title. At the Athens Olympic Games he qualified for the final, but registered just two valid throws after tearing a ligament in his finger in the fifth round and finished seventh. It was the highest ever result for an Australian male thrower at the Olympic Games. He didn’t compete domestically in 2005 as he recovered from the finger injury, forcing his withdrawal from the world championships team.
2006 – 2007 – Resumed competition, threw 19.97m in Brisbane but re-injured his finger in Canberra, requiring surgery and missed the Australian championships and the Commonwealth Games in Melbourne. Returned to domestic competition in 2007 and set a new PB in his non-preferred discus event and finished second in the shot to American athlete Christian Cantwell at the Australian championships.
2008 – Justin threw over the 20m mark (20.21m) for the first time in three years, to take victory over Scott Martin (20.19m) at the nationals. Selected in the team for Beijing, where he joined Scott Martin to make it the first Olympics since Melbourne in 1956 that two male shot putters represented Australia. A solid opening throw (19.91m) put Justin in a strong position to make the final of the Olympic Games. However, unable to improve on that mark, he exited the competition in the qualifying round finishing ninth in Group B and 16th overall.
2009 – In March Justin claimed his ninth national shot put crown, winning the event with a heave of 20.03m. At the world championships in Berlin in August, Justin placed 10th in his qualifying group and 14th overall, his best effort of 19.94m not enough to advance to the final round.
2010 – In February Justin announced his retirement from athletics, ending 17 years’ involvement in the sport.