Jordan Geist arrives for Iron Wood Classic on heels of shot-putting giants

Tom Walsh has been to two Olympics, medaled nine times at world championships and was his country’s shot put champion 13 years in a row.

So when he shared the podium with Jordan Geist in March at the World Athletics Indoor Championships in Poland, the New Zealand strongman sensed his younger friend’s pride.

“Your first world medal?” Walsh asked, pointing at the silver hanging from Geist’s neck.

“Hey, this is my first world team,” Geist said.

The going isn’t easy on these shores in Jordan Geist’s chosen profession. Other events on the track and field menu might approach the depth that can be found in the shot, but none has a pair of elephants perched atop the glass ceiling.

But Saturday, Geist comes in as the event’s heavyweight at the Iron Wood Classic starting at 11 a.m. on the grounds of the throwing club’s center on Highway 53 east of Rathdrum at Ramsey Road. It’s a World Athletics bronze-level meet, with world ranking points and a $30,000 prize purse at stake.

He’s also the host of sorts: the Arizona alum throws under Iron Wood affiliation on his forays around the world.

Most recently, that was a stop at last weekend’s Los Angeles Grand Prix, where Geist’s mark of 71 feet, 43/4 inches placed him second, 7 inches shy of Jamaica’s Rajindra Campbell. But he beat, among others, three-time Olympic silver medalist Joe Kovacs, continuing a 2026 hot streak that has him nudging those big elephants.

“I’ve been really lucky to be all over the place this year,” he said, “and to be off to a good start.”

The silver at worlds is only part of it. He’s also:

• Won Washington’s World Indoor Tour points title in a three-meet series in Europe, ahead of Campbell and Kovacs.

• Climbed to second in the Diamond League standings behind three-time Olympic gold medalist Ryan Crouser.

• Reached No. 8 in the overall World Athletics shot rankings, after ending 2025 in 16th.

All this sandwiched around coaching his throwers at Slippery Rock University, where he produced a pair of Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference champions. Geist went full time on the staff last November, joining a couple of volunteers – Jim and Judy Geist, both Slippery Rock hall of famers who got their son started in the shot at age 8.

“I was never much good at baseball,” he remembered, “so I needed something to do in the spring.”

This seems to be working out better.

Still, sometimes membership in the long-throw club seems to have limited privileges.

The 70-foot put of the shot is the old four-minute mile, in that it barely merits the arch of an eyebrow. Now 26 having thrown 73 or farther – Geist’s best is 73-0 – and 15 of those are still active.

What makes things tougher is that two men – Kovacs and Crouser – are greedy about the important hardware. The two have won all but one of the last nine Olympic or world championships, plus six silver medals. At the national level, they’ve won 9 of the last 11, with seven seconds.

No wonder Geist was so thrilled just to make the plane to Poland.

“In America, you have all these guys who are medal contenders,” he said, “and half of them end up watching from the couch because we can only send three or four on the national team in a given year. Honestly, we could have six and maybe seven athletes make the final at a worlds or an Olympics.

“So when you make a national team, you know you earned it. Wearing ‘USA’ across your chest throwing the shot, that means something.”

But keeping your aspirations in sync with your expectations can be a challenge.

“On the day, all you can think about is yourself,” Geist said. “I’m never going to be able to control how far Ryan Crouser throws or how far Joe Kovacs throws.

“Mentally, this year has been really good for me. It’s the first year I’ve beaten Joe, and the first year I’ve beaten Ryan. I can move forward with more confidence, knowing I’ve done it.”

Consistency counts, too. In his 10 meets this year, Geist’s average winning mark is 71-2.

Geist first visited Iron Wood in 2016 as the nation’s top prep thrower from Knoch High School in Pennsylvania – yes, he was known as the “Knochness Monster.” His 74-41/2 mark in Rathdrum was the year’s leader, and held up as the meet record until the preps were dropped from the program after 2019.

Then it was off to Arizona. He broke 70 feet with the heavier shot in his second college meet and would win two NCAA and six Pac-12 titles. There he would also hook up with coach TJ Crater, who now directs the Iron Wood operation. Though he was never an Iron Wood enrollee, he has worked the annual camp as an instructor and marvels at the inspirational atmosphere.

But then, he gets that at meets, too.

“As good as all these guys are, we’re all building off each other’s throws and you know guys are supporting you,” Geist said. “We’re all in this together and like to see the other guy do well.”

Because they all know, every inch has to be earned.