German Christina Schwanitz confirmed her status as the form shot-putter of 2015 by winning her first world championship gold medal with a throw of 20.37 meters on Saturday.
The 29-year-old disappointed the home crowd at the Bird's Nest stadium by edging Gong Lijao into second place with her third throw, leaving the Chinese to take silver on the back of her third effort of 20.30 meters at the IAAF World Championships.
American Michelle Carter threw 19.76 meters to beat Anita Marton, who bettered Hungary's national record with her best attempt of 19.48, and take the bronze medal.
New Zealander Valerie Adams, who won gold at the last four world championships, elected to skip the meeting so she could undergo shoulder and elbow surgeries with an eye on her Olympic title defense in Rio de Janeiro next year.