His coach is Ashley Kovacs, his wife... is an only child, son of Joseph and Joanna Kovacs, both of whom were school teachers...his father died from colon cancer when Joe was 7 and his grandmother died of a heart attack the following day…Kovacs’ mother was a 12-time district champion in high school with shot put, discus, and javelin… started throwing shot put in high school to stay in shape for football, but his high school didn’t have track facilities…instead, Kovacs made his own throwing circle in the school parking lot…he had a breakout season in 2015, capturing the USATF outdoor, world outdoor and Diamond League shot put titles, and finished the season ranked No. 1 in the world in shot put…won the 2019 World title in what is considered to be one of the greatest shot put competitions of all time…he speaks German, enjoys playing golf during his time off, is an investor in drone technology and solar companies and has traveled to more than 30 countries. Kovacs also has a pilot's license.