Adams came to Moscow with an unbeaten streak of 39, and the best five marks of the season. Her former arch rival Nadezhda Ostapchuk was absent, having failed two doping tests at the London Olympics and a further re-test of her sample from Helsinki 2005. In the first round of the final, Carter opened with 19.92, then Adams took the lead with 20.41. The New Zealander claimed the title with her second round throw of 20.46, improving in the third to 20.88, her best of the day. Gong’s second round 19.95 held the silver medal until the final round, when the ecstatic Schwanitz jumped up from fifth with a personal best 20.41. For Adams it was a fourth title in a row, making her the only woman to achieve that feat.