Named a volunteer coach for Belmont's men's and women's track and field programs in October of 2021, Nick Ponzio works with the Bruins' throwers. He arrived in the Music City following his first Olympic Summer Games, the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, which were postponed a year due to the COVID-19 global pandemic and took place July 23 - Aug 21, 2021, in Japan.
A native of Temecula, California, Ponzio represented Italy in the shot put at the 2020 Tokyo Games as his great grandfather immigrated to the United States from Sicily. One of three Italian athletes competing in the shot put at the 2020 Summer Games, Ponzio was a NCAA Division I All-American thrower at the University of Southern California from 2015-18. After starting his collegiate career at the University of Florida, Ponzio transferred to USC where he became one of the best in the nation in the shot put.
In 2015 as a redshirt freshman, Ponzio became the first Trojan freshman to garner first-team All-American honors in the shot put with an eighth-place finish at the NCAA Championships. At the 2017 Pac-12 Conference Championships, Ponzio earned silver in the shot put before placing sixth at the NCAA Championships to land a spot on the All-America First Team once again.
Excelling as a professional thrower, Ponzio won the 2019 USA Track & Field (USATF) San Diego Association Championships shot put and was runner-up at the 2020 USA Indoor Championships. In Italy, Ponzio captured the 2021 Italy Athletics Championships title with a shot put mark of 68-2.25 (20.58m) after winning the 2020 Diamond League (Rome).
Ponzio’s throwing career has also been highlighted by several other professional meet wins throughout the U.S., including the Throws U 2020 Summer Meet 2 at Berks Catholic Athletic Field in Kutztown, Pennsylvania, where he launched a personal-best shot put toss of 71-3.25 (21.72m) on July 24, 2020. He is currently ranked 21st in the world in the shot put.
Born in San Diego, California, Ponzio starred at Great Oak High School where he was a California state champion in the shot put and fourth-place finisher in the discus throw at the state championship meet. One of the top junior throwers in the country, Ponzio competed at both the 2013 and 2014 USA Juniors, finishing in the top 10 in the shot put in 2014.
Nick has built his brand on social media as well where he can be found on Instagram under the username @chubbydiamonds – Nick “Nicky Two Chins” Ponzio.
