Knoch senior shot put standout Jordan Geist has yet to meet a record that couldn't break.
The Arizona commit waited until his last indoor meet of 2016 to break the national and world high school indoor shot put record with a throw of 68 feet, 4 inches with a 16-pound shot put Thursday night at Hempfield.
“I don't think it really hit me. I'm still in shock,” Geist said. “I had no idea how far I was going to be able to throw. We never expected something this big, this early in the season.”
The throw qualifies Geist for the IAAF World Championships next August in London.
The 6-foot-2, 250-pound Geist broke a 5-year-old record set by Ryan Crouser (63-11) from Sam Barlow High School in Gresham, Ore., in 2011. Crouser went on to win gold at the Rio Olympics this past summer. Geist's record-breaking throw would have finished fifth in Rio.
“It's an awesome goal,” Geist said. “I step back and look at some of the professional guys who can't even throw that far. It's awesome just knowing that I can throw that now.”
Geist, the WPIAL (72-7) and PIAA (74-3 1⁄2) shot put record holder, started the night breaking Crouser's record (63-11) with a throw of 64-5 1⁄2 on his third throw of the competition. The two-time Penn Relays champion and 2016 Gatorade Track and Field Athlete of the Year came right back to shatter his own record on his sixth throw.
“After the second throw, I was a few inches off and after looking at video I thought if I made a few little changes I could throw a little bit more,” Geist said.
Geist, the No. 1 ranked high school shot put thrower and weight thrower in the nation, also broke his own state record in the weight with a throw of 76-6.
Geist, who was one of the most sought after shot putters in the country, eclipsed the top Division I shot put throw of 2016 set by Filip Mihaljevic, of the University of Virginia. Mihaljevic threw a 67-11 1⁄2 to take top honors at the 2016 NCAA Track and Field Championships in Eugene, Ore., last June.
“(This record) tops it all easily and having the ‘world's' 16-pound high school record is by far the best accomplishment I've ever had,” Geist said.
William Whalen is a freelance writer.
