Joe Kovacs Parents

Olympic shot-putter Joe Kovacs was born on June 28, 1989. His personal bests are 22.05 meters indoors and 23.23 meters outdoors; the former ranks him second all-time in the shot put event. In the World Championships in 2015 and 2019, he took home gold medals. Further, in the Summer Olympics of 2016, 2020, and the World Championships in 2017, he won silver medals.

Born in Nazareth, Pennsylvania, he went to Bethlehem Catholic High School and won Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association (PIAA) titles in shot put and discus throw in his senior year. Joe claims that when he began throwing as a freshman, his mother, a 12-time district level champion in discus throw, shot put, and javelin herself, saw him practise the wrong method. She then corrected the techniques, leading her to becoming his first coach.

Since 2019, his wife, Ashley Kovacs, has been his coach. Ashley was a college shot-putter and throwing coach for Vanderbilt. Most recently, Kovacs came closest to his personal best in May 2024 when he threw 22.93 meters at Drake Stadium in Los Angeles. In 2023, he finished third in the World Athletics Championship held in Budapest.

Who are Joe Kovacs’ parents?

Joe Kovacs’ parents are Joseph and Joanna Kovacs.

Joseph and Joanna met at East Stroudsburg University, 25 miles north of Nazareth via Route 33, and married in December 1985. However, after 12 years of marriage, Joseph died from colon cancer. Both of them were school-teachers.

Who is Joe Kovacs’ father?

Joe Kovacs’ father was Joseph Kovacs.

The Kovacs family was shocked to hear that, despite being in excellent health, Joseph had been diagnosed with colon cancer at the age of 33. Joseph endured one surgery before learning that the cancer had progressed further. According to Kovacs, he was given less than six months to live.

The family's savings were used to pay for an alternate treatment that was offered in Germany and Joanna brought her seven-year-old son, who was nearing the end of his school year, with her. Joseph unfortunately passed away on July 14, 1997, following two months in a coma, in spite of their best efforts.

Before Joanna and her son Joe flew back to the United States the following day, she got word that her mother (Joe Kovacs’ grandmother) had died of complications from an earlier heart attack. It was a difficult moment for the family to deal with such terrible losses.

Who is Joe Kovacs’ mother?

Joe Kovacs’ mother is Joanna Kovacs.

Before being a school teacher, Joanna was a 12-time district throwing champion in discus, shot-put and javelin; she was also named the school's Ideal Female Athlete in 1983. After her husband's death in 1997, she mainly focused on her son and remarried 18 years later, in 2015, to Larry Royer.

In an effort to keep in shape for his football games, Joe took up shot-putting, which piqued his interest and so his mother served as his first coach. When his throws began to go beyond the school's parking lot and land on the road, she found a local throwing expert and took him there every Sunday.