Rutger Smith is a Dutch

Netherlands

The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...

 track and field

Track and field

Track and field is a sport comprising various competitive athletic contests based around the activities of running, jumping and throwing. The name of the sport derives from the venue for the competitions: a stadium which features an oval running track surrounding a grassy area...

 athlete competing in the shot put

Shot put

The shot put is a track and field event involving "putting" a heavy metal ball—the shot—as far as possible. It is common to use the term "shot put" to refer to both the shot itself and to the putting action....

 and discus throw

Discus throw

The discus throw is an event in track and field athletics competition, in which an athlete throws a heavy disc—called a discus—in an attempt to mark a farther distance than his or her competitors. It is an ancient sport, as evidenced by the 5th century BC Myron statue, Discobolus...

. He was the first athlete to win medals at the World Championships in both events. He represented the Netherlands at the Summer Olympics in 2004 and 2008. His personal best of 21.62 m for the shot put is the Dutch national record

Dutch records in athletics

The following are the national records in athletics in the Netherlands maintained by its national athletics federation: Koninklijke Nederlandse Atletiek Unie .-Men:-Women:-Men:-Women:+ = en route to a longer distance...

.

In his first international competition, he won a shot put and discus double at the 1999 European Athletics Junior Championships

1999 European Athletics Junior Championships

The 1999 European Athletics Junior Championships is the 1999 version of the European Athletics Junior Championships. It was held in Riga, Latvia.-Men's results:-Women's results:- Medal table :-References:* - GBR Athletics* - GBR Athletics...

. At the 2000 World Junior Championships

2000 World Junior Championships in Athletics

The 2000 World Junior Championships in Athletics is the 2000 version of the World Junior Championships in Athletics. It was held in Santiago, Chile.-Men:-Women:-Medals table:...

 he won medals in both events, and he also competed in both events at the 2004 Olympics

Athletics at the 2004 Summer Olympics

At the 2004 Summer Olympics, the athletics events were held at the Athens Olympic Stadium from August 18 to August 29, except for the marathons , the race walks , and the shot put...

. In 2005 he won silver medal

Silver medal

A silver medal is a medal awarded to the second place finisher of contests such as the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, and contests with similar formats....

s in shot put at the European Indoor Championships

2005 European Indoor Athletics Championships

The 28th European Athletics Indoor Championships were held at the Palacio de Deportes in Madrid, the capital city of Spain, from Friday, 4 March to Sunday, 6 March 2005.-Men:...

 and World Championships

2005 World Championships in Athletics

The 10th World Championships in Athletics, under the auspices of the International Association of Athletics Federations , were held in the Olympic Stadium, Helsinki, Finland , the site of the first IAAF World Championships in 1983. One theme of the 2005 championships was paralympic sports, some of...

. Two years later he won the bronze medal

Bronze medal

A bronze medal is a medal awarded to the third place finisher of contests such as the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, etc. The practice of awarding bronze third place medals began at the 1904 Olympic Games in St...

 in the discus at the 2007 World Championships

2007 World Championships in Athletics

The 11th World Championships in Athletics, under the auspices of the International Association of Athletics Federations , were held at Nagai Stadium in Osaka, Japan from 24 August to 2 September 2007...

 and narrowly missed a shot put medal with a fourth place finish.

A series of back problems affected his throwing after he competed at the 2008 Beijing Olympics and he did not return to competition until April 2011.

Achievements

1999	European Junior Championships 1999 European Athletics Junior Championships The 1999 European Athletics Junior Championships is the 1999 version of the European Athletics Junior Championships. It was held in Riga, Latvia.-Men's results:-Women's results:- Medal table :-References:* - GBR Athletics* - GBR Athletics...	Riga Riga Riga is the capital and largest city of Latvia. With 702,891 inhabitants Riga is the largest city of the Baltic states, one of the largest cities in Northern Europe and home to more than one third of Latvia's population. The city is an important seaport and a major industrial, commercial,... , Latvia	1st	Shot put
			1st	Discus throw
2000	World Junior Championships 2000 World Junior Championships in Athletics The 2000 World Junior Championships in Athletics is the 2000 version of the World Junior Championships in Athletics. It was held in Santiago, Chile.-Men:-Women:-Medals table:...	Santiago, Chile Chile Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...	1st	Shot put
			3rd	Discus throw
2001	Universiade Athletics at the 2001 Summer Universiade At the 2001 Summer Universiade, the athletics events were held in Beijing, People's Republic of China. A total of 45 events were contested, of which 23 by male and 22 by female athletes. The host country, China, took the most gold medals and the most medals overall . The United States were a close...	Beijing Beijing Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's... , China	12th	Shot put
			11th	Discus throw
2002	European Indoor Championships 2002 European Athletics Indoor Championships The 27th European Athletics Indoor Championships were held from Friday, 1 March to Sunday, 3 March 2002 in Vienna, the capital city of Austria.-Men:-Women:-Medal table:Key:-Participating nations:...	Vienna Vienna Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre... , Austria	10th (qualifying)	Shot put
	European Championships 2002 European Championships in Athletics The 18th European Athletics Championships were held from 6 August to 11 August 2002 in the Olympic Stadium of Munich, Germany.-Track:1994 |1998 |2002 |2006 |2010 |...	Munich Munich Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat... , Germany Germany Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...	8th	Shot put 2002 European Athletics Championships – Men's shot put These are the official results of the Men's shot put event at the 2002 European Championships in Munich, Germany. There were a total number of 27 participating athletes...
2003	World Indoor Championships 2003 IAAF World Indoor Championships The 9th IAAF World Indoor Championships in Athletics were held in the National Indoor Arena in Birmingham, UK from 14 March to 16 March 2003. It was the first time the Championships had been held in the UK...	Birmingham Birmingham Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a... , United Kingdom	10th (qualifying)	Shot put
	European U23 Championships 2003 European Athletics U23 Championships The 2003 European Athletics U23 Championships was held in Bydgoszcz, Poland at the Zdzisław Krzyszkowiak Stadium between 17–20 July 2003.- Men's :-Women's:-Medals table:-References:* . GBR Athletics. Retrieved on 2009-08-05.*...	Bydgoszcz, Poland	3rd	Shot put
			1st	Discus throw
	World Championships 2003 World Championships in Athletics The 9th World Championships in Athletics, under the auspices of the International Association of Athletics Federations, were held from 23 August to 31 August 2003 in the Stade de France in Saint-Denis, Seine-Saint-Denis, France.-Track:...	Paris Paris Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region... , France	11th (qualifying)	Shot put 2003 World Championships in Athletics – Men's shot put These are the official results of the Men's Shot Put event at the 2003 World Championships in Paris, France. There were a total number of 31 participating athletes, with the final held on Saturday 23 August 2003.-Medalists:-Schedule:...
			6th (qualifying)	Discus throw 2003 World Championships in Athletics – Men's discus throw These are the official results of the Men's Discus Throw event at the 2003 World Championships in Paris, France. There were a total number of 27 participating athletes, with the final held on Tuesday 26 August 2003.-Medalists:-Schedule:...
2004	World Indoor Championships 2004 IAAF World Indoor Championships The 10th IAAF World Indoor Championships in Athletics under the auspices of the International Association of Athletics Federations were held in the Budapest Arena, Hungary between March 5 and March 7, 2004...	Budapest Budapest Budapest is the capital of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary, it is the country's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, and transportation centre. In 2011, Budapest had 1,733,685 inhabitants, down from its 1989 peak of 2,113,645 due to suburbanization. The Budapest Commuter... , Hungary	7th (qualifying)	Shot put 2004 IAAF World Indoor Championships – Men's shot put The Men's shot put event at the 2004 IAAF World Indoor Championships was held on March 6–7.-Medalists:-Qualification:Qualifying performance 20.50 or 8 best performers advanced to the final.-Final:-References:*...
	Olympic Games Athletics at the 2004 Summer Olympics At the 2004 Summer Olympics, the athletics events were held at the Athens Olympic Stadium from August 18 to August 29, except for the marathons , the race walks , and the shot put...	Athens, Greece	7th (qualifying)	Shot put
			8th (qualifying)	Discus throw
2005	European Indoor Championships	Madrid Madrid Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan... , Spain Spain Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...	2nd	Shot put 2005 European Athletics Indoor Championships – Men's shot put The Men's shot put event at the 2005 European Athletics Indoor Championships was held on March 4–5.-Medalists:-Qualification:Qualifying perf. 20.10 or 8 best performers advanced to the Final.-Final:...
	World Championships 2005 World Championships in Athletics The 10th World Championships in Athletics, under the auspices of the International Association of Athletics Federations , were held in the Olympic Stadium, Helsinki, Finland , the site of the first IAAF World Championships in 1983. One theme of the 2005 championships was paralympic sports, some of...	Helsinki Helsinki Helsinki is the capital and largest city in Finland. It is in the region of Uusimaa, located in southern Finland, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, an arm of the Baltic Sea. The population of the city of Helsinki is , making it by far the most populous municipality in Finland. Helsinki is... , Finland Finland Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...	2nd	Shot put
2006	European Championships	Gothenburg Gothenburg Gothenburg is the second-largest city in Sweden and the fifth-largest in the Nordic countries. Situated on the west coast of Sweden, the city proper has a population of 519,399, with 549,839 in the urban area and total of 937,015 inhabitants in the metropolitan area... , Sweden Sweden Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....	4th	Shot put 2006 European Athletics Championships – Men's shot put The men's shot put at the 2006 European Athletics Championships were held at the Ullevi on August 7.Bartels was outside the podium before the final attempt, having managed 20.57 in his first five, whereas Mikhnevich and Olsen had achieved their best attempts in round two...
			7th	Discus throw 2006 European Athletics Championships – Men's discus throw The men's discus throw at the 2006 European Athletics Championships were held at the Ullevi on August 10 and August 12.-Medalists:-Schedule:-Qualification:...
	World Athletics Final 2006 IAAF World Athletics Final The 4th IAAF World Athletics Final was held at the Gottlieb-Daimler-Stadion in Stuttgart, Germany on September 9 and September 10, 2006.-Results:-External links:*...	Stuttgart Stuttgart Stuttgart is the capital of the state of Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. The sixth-largest city in Germany, Stuttgart has a population of 600,038 while the metropolitan area has a population of 5.3 million .... , Germany Germany Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...	3rd	Shot put
2007	European Indoor Championships	Birmingham Birmingham Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a... , United Kingdom	9th (qualifying)	Shot put 2007 European Athletics Indoor Championships – Men's shot put The Men's shot put event at the 2007 European Athletics Indoor Championships was held on March 2.-Medalists:-Qualification:Qualifying perf. 20.00 or 8 best performers advanced to the Final.-Final:...
	World Championships 2007 World Championships in Athletics The 11th World Championships in Athletics, under the auspices of the International Association of Athletics Federations , were held at Nagai Stadium in Osaka, Japan from 24 August to 2 September 2007...	Osaka Osaka is a city in the Kansai region of Japan's main island of Honshu, a designated city under the Local Autonomy Law, the capital city of Osaka Prefecture and also the biggest part of Keihanshin area, which is represented by three major cities of Japan, Kyoto, Osaka and Kobe... , Japan Japan Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...	4th	Shot put
			3rd	Discus throw
	World Athletics Final 2007 IAAF World Athletics Final The 5th IAAF World Athletics Final was held at the Gottlieb-Daimler-Stadion in Stuttgart, Germany on September 22 and September 23, 2007.-Men:- Women :-External links:*...	Stuttgart Stuttgart Stuttgart is the capital of the state of Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. The sixth-largest city in Germany, Stuttgart has a population of 600,038 while the metropolitan area has a population of 5.3 million .... , Germany Germany Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...	6th	Shot put
2008	World Indoor Championships 2008 IAAF World Indoor Championships The 2008 IAAF World Indoor Championships in Athletics were held at the Luis Puig Palace in Valencia, Spain, March 7-9, 2008.-Bid:Valencia was announced the winning bidder by the IAAF on November 13, 2005 at an IAAF Council meeting in Moscow, Russia.-Men:...	Valencia, Spain Spain Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...	5th	Shot put
	Olympic Games Athletics at the 2008 Summer Olympics - Men's shot put The Men's Shot Put event at the 2008 Olympic Games took place on 15 August at the Beijing Olympic Stadium.The qualifying standards were 20.30 m and 19.80 m .-Medalists:-Schedule:...	Beijing Beijing Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's... , China	9th	Shot put
			7th	Discus throw

Personal bests

• Shot put - 21.62 m (2006), national record
  Dutch records in athletics
  The following are the national records in athletics in the Netherlands maintained by its national athletics federation: Koninklijke Nederlandse Atletiek Unie .-Men:-Women:-Men:-Women:+ = en route to a longer distance...
  
  
• Discus throw - 67.63 m (2007)