As of February 2022, which athlete holds the British legal record in the shot put?

Geoffrey Lewis Capes (born 23 August 1949) is a British former shot putter, strongman and professional Highland Games competitor. He represented England and Great Britain in field athletics, specialising in the shot put, an event in which he was twice Commonwealth champion, twice European indoor champion, and competed at three Olympic Games.

His first Olympic experience was in 1972 when he competed in Munich. The 21-year-old Capes did not make it past the qualifying round, but improved on this considerably four years later. Having thrown a personal best of 21.55 m on 28 May 1976 at Gateshead, he went into the 1976 Montreal Olympics as one of the favourites for the gold medal. He came second in his qualifying group but sixth overall in the final, the winner being Udo Beyer of East Germany.

1980 was the year that saw Capes throw the longest distance of his career: his 21.68 m (71 ft. 3.5 in.) in Cwmbran on 18 May 1980 being a new Commonwealth and British record. He went into the Olympics as the athlete with the best distance that year and once again a favourite for the title. However, he eventually placed fifth, the winner being Vladimir Kiselyov whose Olympic record of 21.35 m was well short of what Capes had achieved prior to the Games.

In 1983 Capes was voted Britain's best-ever field athlete. His 1980 British record still stands. In 2003 Carl Myerscough threw further but the distance was not ratified.