Carter won the 2016 gold medal at the Rio Olympics on the last of her six throws, edging two-time defending champion
Valerie Adams of
New Zealand. In doing so, Carter became the first
United States women's athlete to win the event since the women's competition began at the
1948 Summer Olympic Games in
London, and only the second American to win any medal in the event (
Earlene Brown, bronze, 1960). Carter broke her own American record with an Olympic gold medal-winning toss of . She finished fifteenth at the
2008 Olympic Games and fourth at the
2012 Olympic Games. A bronze medalist at the 2015 and 2017 IAAF World Championships, Carter also won the gold medal at the 2016 World Indoor Championships after winning the bronze in 2012. She won the silver medal at the
2001 World Youth Championships and the gold medal at the
2004 World Junior Championships. In addition to winning the
2008 United States Olympic Team Trials, she was the 2009, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2015 and 2016
national champion. While competing for the
University of Texas, she won the
NCAA collegiate national championship in 2006. In college, she was a seven-time
All-American, and also won the
Big 12 Conference title five times. In 2006, she won the NCAA indoor title to also help the University of Texas women claim the NCAA team title. With a runner-up finish in the shot put at the 2005 outdoor meet, Carter helped the Longhorns win the NCAA championship. In June 2022, Carter announced her retirement from competition. == Awards and recognitions ==