What 3-time gold medalist Ryan Crouser said about Nixa five-star prospect Jackson Cantwell

While the eyes of the world were on Ryan Crouser this past week when he cemented himself as the best shot putter of all time, there's reason to believe the three-time defending gold medalist has recently had his eyes on southwest Missouri's shot put and high school football phenom.

Crouser, who became the only shot put thrower to win three Olympic gold medals in the event with his throw of 75 feet, 1¾ inches on Saturday in France, has been on record about Nixa High School junior Jackson Cantwell's capability of beating the long-standing American high school record.

Michael Carter, a three-time Super Bowl nose tackle with the San Francisco 49ers from 1984-92, set the high school shot put record in 1979 with a throw of 81 feet, 3.5-inch throw with a 12-pound shot. It was over nine feet more than the previous record.

Cantwell, the son of United States Olympians Christan Cantwell and Teri Cantwell (formerly Steer), recently became the first boy in sophomore-class history to throw over 70 feet in an event, topping out at 74 feet, 9.75 inches, the ninth-best throw in high school history. After coming in first at the state meet, Cantwell threw at Nike Nationals in Oregon, winning the national championship by more than five feet.

In an interview with FloTrack during the U.S. Olympic Team Trials, Crouser was asked about Cantwell and if he thinks the rising junior is capable of breaking the record.

"I think he definitely has the potential," Crouser said. "It's not going to be easy. If he's dedicated and works hard and things come together, I think it's possible and that's really saying something. There are only a few people in history who have come close to it. Statistically, it might be the most difficult record to break in any high school sport. I think he does have a chance.

"He's a big kid, he's strong and you saw significant technical improvement from him this year. I think that's where you'll see, if he does get it, it'll come on the technical. Physically, he's capable of doing it, for sure."

Cantwell is ranked as the No. 2 football prospect in the 2026 class, according to Rivals. He's a consensus five-star recruit listed at 6-foot-8, 300 pounds. He recently cut his list of colleges in half to 14 and plans to commit in the late summer or early fall of 2025. Cantwell recently visited Alabama, Georgia and LSU.