Two-time Olympic gold medalist Ryan Crouser revealed his grandfather, who introduced him to the sport, passed away the day before Crouser left for Tokyo.
Crouser, from Oregon, called his grandfather ”my biggest fan and biggest supporter”
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“He got to see Olympic gold in 2016 and got to see the world record. And I know it felt like he was there with me today, and I know he'd be proud. And he was a Team USA fan until the end,” he said.
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The world record was broken by Crouser at the U.S. Olympic Trials with a distance of 76 feet, 8¼ inches.
Crouser attended the University of Texas for his collegiate track and field career and collected quite a few gold medals in discus and shot put.
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He says he has two favorite things about Texas - the Gulf and the barbecue food.
“I love the beach, the ocean and the barbecue. Definitely miss Texas barbecue.”
His least favorite aspect of the state is the heat, something that had followed him to Tokyo.
“My least favorite thing about Texas is probably what was getting us out there today. It was hot. Texas is hot.”
Though the heat is “tough,” Crouser says the Texas sun helped him prepare for his performance.
“I felt it’s a good thing because it prepared me. I handled the heat well out there, day in, day out.”
