Anchorage shot putter Jordan Clarke was less than two inches away from making the finals in his debut at the world track and field championships Saturday.
Clarke, 25, placed 13th in preliminary competition in Beijing. The top 12 throwers advanced to the finals.
Clarke's best throw was 65 feet, 3.25 inches. The final man to advance to the finals, New Zealand's Jacko Gill, threw 65-5.
Clarke is the youngest member of the United States' powerful shot putting contingent. All three of his teammates advanced, including Joe Kovacs, the only thrower to crack the 70-foot mark in the qualifying rounds.
Kovacs topped one of the two qualifying pools. The other pool was led by David Storl of Germany, who competed in the same pool as Clarke and registered the second-best qualifying mark with a 69-9.
Clarke, a Bartlett High graduate who was a four-time NCAA champion for Arizona State, is in his second season as a professional. Earlier this summer he set his personal best with a throw of 70-6.25 in a meet in Eugene, Oregon.