Torrance reached his peak in 1934, becoming the world's leading shot putter.[9] His main rival that year was John Lyman.[9][11] Torrance broke Douda's world record in Lafayette on March 24, throwing 16.30 m (53 ft 6 in).[11][12] Lyman tied that mark on April 14[11][13] and then threw 16.48 m (54 ft 3⁄4 in) on April 21, setting a new world record.[10][14][15] However, that record lasted for only six days as Torrance improved to 16.80 m (55 ft 1+1⁄2 in) at the Drake Relays.[10][14] In May, he reached 17.19 m (56 ft 5 in) in an unofficial exhibition.[9][11]
Torrance successfully defended both his NCAA title and his national title. At the 1934 NCAA championships he won with a put of 16.62 m (54 ft 6+9⁄16 in), defeating Lyman by almost a foot.[3][11][16] However, he failed to qualify for the discus final.[17] At the June 30 national championships in Milwaukee, Lyman improved to 16.70 m (54 ft 9+1⁄2 in), better than Torrance's NCAA mark; however, Torrance won with 16.89 m (55 ft 5+1⁄4 in), breaking his own world record.[7]
Torrance then went on a European tour. He set his final world record at Bislett in Oslo on August 5, throwing 17.40 m (57 ft 1 in).[9][10][18] In a separate competition in the same meet, he threw 16.73 m (54 ft 10+5⁄8 in) with his right hand and 11.95 m (39 ft 2+3⁄8 in) with his left hand to break the world record total for both hands by one centimeter.[19] In total, he had ten competitions of 16.45 m (53 ft 11+1⁄2 in) or better during 1934.[20]
While Torrance did not improve his record in 1935, he remained the world's leading shot putter.[9] He was national champion both in the indoors and outdoors event[1] and topped the world list at 16.60 m (54 ft 5+1⁄2 in), ahead of Germany's Hans Woellke and Lyman.[8] With the Olympic Games in Berlin less than a year away, he was considered not only a clear favorite for the Olympic shot put,[9] but one of America's top prospects in any event.[21]
Torrance, though, was badly overweight by the summer of 1936, weighing 325 pounds in July.[22] Attempts to reduce his weight ahead of the Olympics were unsuccessful.[23] He had also cut down on training.[20] Even so, he entered the Olympics as the world leader[24] and winner of the United States Olympic Trials.[20] In Berlin, he only managed 15.38 m (50 feet 5+1⁄2 in), placing him fifth.[1]
After the Olympics, Torrance turned his attention to other sports. He debuted as a boxer in December 1936, knocking out Owen Flynn in the first round.[25][26][27] His next three bouts were also quick knock-out wins.[28] In the aftermath of an aborted February 1937 fight, however, his manager Herbert Brodie was suspended and fined for attempting to fix his matches.[29] Torrance himself was found not to have played a part and continued his boxing career.[29] On April 28, 1937 he was knocked out in the second round by Abe Simon[30][31] and his boxing career subsequently went on a downward spiral.[32]
Torrance's shot put world record outlasted his sports career, remaining in the books until Charlie Fonville threw 17.68 m (58 ft 1⁄4 in) on April 17, 1948.[10][37] Torrance was inducted in the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame in 1961.[38] He died in November 1969 of a heart attack.[38] In 2015, Torrance was inducted into the USATF Hall of Fame in New York City.
