Discus competition hurt by weather

By Glen Worthington
Daily Bruin Contributor

EUGENE, Ore. “”mdash; Throwers are big, strong and hardy, but
even they are not impervious to the elements.

Inclement Oregon weather opened up the discus competition. The
cold and the wind made competing unpleasant, but the rain made it
downright difficult. In an event where the grip between slick shoes
and a cement ring, and between a hand and a smooth, metal disc is
essential, any slippage mars performance.

Add to that the pressure of NCAA competition, and the discus
became a true test not only of athletic ability, but of focus and
determination.

It was obvious the discus event would not be normal when, prior
to warm-ups, officials used a leaf blower to dry the ring.

Needless to say, the competitors struggled.

Jason Gervais, a Wyoming senior ranked fourth before Friday,
apparently could not cope. He fouled five of his six throws with
either his toe sliding out of the ring or the discus leaving his
hand early and soaring out of bounds. On his final throw of the
day, the discus flew out off his hand into the protective net
““ a frustrating finish to a frustrating day for the highly
ranked senior.

UCLA redshirt freshman Dan Ames’s last throw in the
preliminary round may have been good enough for a spot in the
finals if his toe hadn’t slipped out of the ring. Did a wet
ring cause or at least contribute to the foul?

Maybe, but Ames wouldn’t scapegoat his difficulties on the
weather.

“It affected everyone the same,” Ames commented.

Fellow-Bruin junior Scott Moser was more vocal.

“It was odd because nobody could really get going,”
he said. “You didn’t know who was going to start it off
with a big throw. We knew it was going to be kind of a weird day.
(The weather) was more of a physical factor than a mental one
because I really didn’t let it get to me. It was just hard to
throw in swirling wind and drizzling and cold.”

As if thinking about technique and focus wasn’t enough,
Moser said that all the throwers had to worry about drying off
before entering the ring and whether or not to switch to rain shoes
with more traction.

After throwing well in the first round, Moser found it difficult
to get back into the groove in the finals. The wait in between the
first and final rounds was over an hour, and it was difficult for
the first round throwers to stay warmed-up.

But track and field is an outdoor sport, and dealing with
weather is part of the game. Despite all the adverse circumstances,
the top three going into the discus, Tolga Koseoglu of Texas A
& M, Gabor Mate of Auburn and Moser, finished in the top three.
Some of the other places were affected, but the best of the best
rose to the occasion.