Randy Barnes: Career, World Records, Ban & Net Worth

Some people are just destined for greatness, aren’t they? One of them is Eric Randolph Barnes, also well known as Randy Barnes.

The man who would go on to become one of the greatest names in the game of shot put.

Eric Randolph Barnes, also famously known as Randy Barnes, is an American former shot putter who holds the record for the world’s longest outdoor shot put at 23.12 meters.

After he was done with shot putting, he continued his career in ‘Long drive’ and even qualified for World Long Drive Championships in 2005.

Eric Randolph Barnes was born on June 16, 1996, in Charleston, West Virginia, but spent most of his childhood in St. Albans and graduated from his local school (St. Albans High School).

Randy was into the sport of shot putting since he was in high school, and he started his career at St. Albans High School.

Even if he was just a high schooler, he put an outstanding shot of 20.36 meters (66.8 ft) with a prep shot that weighs 5.4 Kg.

You may know him as the greatest shot-put player, but how much do you know about his personal life.

Quick Facts

 

Full Name	Eric Randolph Barnes
Birth Date	June 16, 1996
Birth Place	Charleston, West Virginia, USA
Nick Name	None
Religion	Unknown
Nationality	American
Ethnicity	White
Education	St.Albans High School, Texas A&M University
Zodiac Sign	Gemini
Current Residence	Unknown
Father’s Name	Randy Barnes
Mother’s Name	Mary Lou
Siblings	Cindy Barnes
Age	28 Years Old
Height	6 ft 4 1⁄2 in
Weight	132 Kg (291 lbs)
Sports	Athletics (Shot Put)
Hair Color	Unknown
Eye Color	Unknown
Married	No
Profession	Shot putter
Net Worth	$1 million – $5 Million
Salary	Not Available
Alumni	St.Albans High School, Texas A&M University
Competitions	1988 Olympics, 1996 Olympics, 2005 World Long Drive Championship
Social Media	N/A
Shot Put’s Merch	Carrier Bag, Indoor/Outdoor Rubber Shot Put
Last Update	April, 2024

Randy Barnes: Early Life

Barnes was enthusiastic from his childhood, and he was fond of many things, and one of them happened to be Shot putting. He began his career in 1985 from his highschool.

Even in his early days, he always managed to surprise everyone.

In 1985, he put a shot of 66.8 ft with a prep shot when he was just a high schooler who had just begun shot putting. That might sound crazy, but the story had just begun.

We couldn’t find more about his childhood and family. It seems like the big man wants to keep his and his family’s life hidden from all the crowd.

Randy Barnes: Age, Height, and Weight

Randy Barnes is currently 54 years old and stands at 6 feet and 4 inches. He weighs around 132 kilograms (291 lb).

Randy Barnes: Personality

As Barnes doesn’t put out much about himself on the media, it is hard to tell what he is like right now. He seems to love his privacy a lot.

Nevertheless, we can assume that he is a very happy-go-lucky kind of guy from his interviews.

As he grew up in West Virginia, he has a very thick Virginian accent, and in one interview, when an interviewer highlighted his accent, he said, “It’s not an accent, I just mumble a lot” and laughed it off.

Randy Barnes: Career

Firstly, Randy began his shot-putting career from high school.

After graduating from St. Albans High School, Barnes went to Texas A&M University, where he broke another record set by ‘Randy Matson.’ He shot 21.88 meters (71.8 ft) with a full-size weight, weighing 16lb (7.26 kg).

He is still the record holder for farthest shot put in Texas A&M’s History with a throw of 71.9 and a half meters.

While at A&M, Barnes also used to do discus throws, and he is the fourth-best discus thrower in the college’s history.

He even trained with the legendary Hall of Famer conditioning coach Istvan Javorek while he was at A&M.

After leaving A&M, The American Giant won 5 national Track and field championships in shot putting.

Randy Barnes: Injury

Randy’s career almost ended before it even began in late April of 1986.

While attending his first-ever competition with international rules at ‘Mt. Sac’ venue, his coach, informed him that he could not tape his hands before throwing.

He thought it wouldn’t be a problem at all and just took the tapes off on the ground and went on to put the shot.

Unfortunately, it was a blunder on his part as he ended up tearing a tendon sheath on his right middle finger.

Most likely a career-ending injury if he was not in his young age. In an interview, he stated that “I kept icing it, thinking the pain would go away, and it never did.”

He had to take off a whole year from shot putting and rest his right hand before it healed completely.

Seoul Olympics (1988)

After training under Coach Istvan Javorek, He went on to become a professional shot putter.

In 1988, he achieved the privilege of participating in the Olympics that was being held in Seoul.

At the age of 22, Randy was able to win a silver medal for his country in shot putting in the Seoul Olympics.

He put a shot of 22.39 meters (73.5 ft) that was amazing in itself, but Ulf Timmermann beat him to it and won the gold medal.

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Atlanta Olympics (1996)

After returning from his ban, Randy got to participate in the 1996 Olympics again. At that time, he was 30 years old, but he still had the spirit.

Despite being in his 30’s and already past his prime, he still had the fight left in him. He won the gold medal this time.

Randy had managed to put the shot for 21.62 meters (70.9 ft) on his final attempt, which led him to win the gold medal.

The gold medalist was then featured on the cover of sports illustrated magazine back in 1996 for his delightful performance.

Randy Barnes: World Records

Despite not winning a gold medal in 1988, Barnes was ready to do something greater than that.

In 1989, he set a new world record for indoor shots put by 22.66 meters (74.3 ft) at the Sunkist Invitational in Los Angeles.

After that outstanding performance, again in 1990, Randy broke the record of Ulf Timmermann in the outdoor shot put and got his revenge for the 1988 Olympics.

The legend put the shot at 23.12 m (75 ft 10 in) this time. And this record of his stands till this day.

Only some players have been able to get near the record distance, but no one has been able to break it yet.

Even though Barnes was having the time of his life, he seemed to have been carried away by all the young age achievements.

Randy Barnes: Long Drive

After being banned from Shot put, Barnes shifted his attention to another athletic game where a player is supposed to hit the golf ball as far as he can.

He even went to the qualifiers of the 2005 World long drive championship.

Randy Barnes: Work out

The Beast’s normal workout consists of throwing for approximately 2 hours, then lifting weights for the next two hours.

Similarly, he continues to do Polymetrics for 45 minutes which helps him improve his balance and techniques.

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Randy Barnes: Bench Press

Barnes is also well known for his beastly show of strength. This man looks like he could rip off anyone in two without any difficulty.

For this beast bench-pressing 565 pounds is a normal thing that he does daily for his body exercise, and he can often do 600 pounds squats for 3 reps.

Randy Barnes: Bans

After breaking the records, his head must have been over heels, and probably because of that, he got carried away and intoxicated himself with ‘Meth’ and even took ‘steroids’ before participating in a competition in Sweden.

He was caught for this despicable act and was banned for the next 27 months to come. Because of this, he missed his chance to participate in the 1992 Olympics.

In 1998, he committed the immoral act again and was caught using different steroids again. He ended up being banned for a lifetime from shot putting.

An unfortunate end to a legendary career.

Randy Barnes: Net Worth

Barnes had earned a lot throughout his shot-putting career as he was one of Americas’ National Champion.

The American Giant’s networth is estimated to be around $1 Million to $5 Million

He is probably somewhere enjoying his life.

There is no information on what he is doing or where he is living right now, so we can’t tell what he is up to these days.

Randy Barnes: Social Media

As of now, Barnes is not available on any social media platforms.

He is a very private person who seems to enjoy his life without any public interventions.

Randy Barnes: Fun Facts

Randy Barnes’s zodiac sign is Gemini, as he was born between May 21 and June 20.

He has won 1 silver medal and 1 gold medal for his country in the Olympics.

The American Giant also won the US National Track and field championship 5 times in shot putting.

As of 2021, his record for the outdoor shot put of 23.12 meters still stands.

In the late 1980’s he used to own a red Corvette.

His lifelong goal at that time was to beat the record of Ulf Timmerman, which he eventually broke in 1990.

“80 FEET” was written on his license plate of his red Corvette

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FAQs

Which world record did Randy Barnes Break?

He broke the indoor shot put record at Sunkist Invitational in Los Angeles and record for outdoor shots put at the Jack-in-the-Box Meeting in Los Angeles, California, USA.

Who has the farthest shot put ever?

As of now, the record for the farthest shot put by a male athlete is held by Randy Barnes.

What technique did Randy Barnes use while shot-putting?

Randy Barnes is famously known for his well-balanced spin technique.