Darlan has the Brazilian shot put record since 2012. Since then, he broke the record so often that even he knows exactly how many national records he beat. He was surpassing the mark again and again in early 2015 when he reached 20.90m. He is the first Brazilian to qualify to the Shot Put at Olympics in 80 years - Antonio Pereira Lira was the last who did it, at the Berlin Games, in 1936. At the 2016 Summer Olympics, in the Men's shot put, he broke the Brazilian record two times, finishing 5th. It was the best participation of a Brazilian in the event. In June 3, 2017, he broke the South American record once again with 21.82 during the Brazilian leg of the IAAF World Challenge, São Bernardo do Campo. In March 2018, he finished 4th place in the Indoor World Championship, with a 21.37 mark, a new indoor South American record. In early September 2018, representing the Americas in the IAAF Continental Cup, Darlan won gold with a 21.89 weight-shot, defeating 2017 World Champion Tom Walsh. On September 15, 2018 became the first South American to reach the mark of 22 m. In the Brazil Trophy, he got the exact mark of 22.00, again breaking the South American record. Fewer than 30 athletes have achieved this mark throughout the history of the event. At the end of 2018, he won the trophy for Best Athlete in Athletics at the Brazil Olympic Award. He finished 5th in the world ranking of Shot Put in 2018. On June 2019, at the Eugene stage of Diamond League, he obtained the 10th best mark of the History in the Shot Put, 22.61. He broke the South American record 3 times in the same event. This would have given him gold in any Olympics or World Championships already held. At the 2019 Pan American Games held in Lima, Peru, even though he had a throat infection that left him with a severe fever the day before the race, he won the gold medal, beating the Pan American Games record, with the mark of 22.07 m. In the Diamond League 2019, he finished as runner-up overall. At the 2019 World Athletics Championships held in Doha, Qatar, the hardest and strongest contest in the history of the Shot Put of all time was held. Tom Walsh pitched 22.90m on the first try. Romani pitched 22.53m in the second attempt, which led him to the second place of the final at the moment. American Crouser pitched 22.71m in the fourth attempt, placing Romani in 3rd place. In the last valid throw, the American Kovacs made a throw of 22.91m, and Crouser got 22.90m, both finishing with gold and silver, and Walsh finished with the bronze also with the 22.90m mark. Romani finished in 4th place, the only one who shot over 22 m along with the 3 medalists. It was the best result of Brazil in World Championships in this competition. Since 1990 no one has thrown the weight over 22.80m, and the top four places in this competition have broken the World Championship record of 22.23m.
