A Stone's Throw

You may only see their events once every four years at the Olympics, but Harvard's indoor track and field throwers have distinguished themselves with huge performances this year.

The women's squad boasts the likes of sophomore Kristy Johnson and freshman Sarah Link, who both made significant improvements this year. On the men's side, junior Ken Hughes and freshman Tarek Hamid have also enjoyed impressive seasons.

In the indoor season, the Crimson track and field teams have only two throwers each and each thrower can only compete in two events: the shotput and the weight.

Both strength and technical proficiency are needed by the throwers to hurl the shot put and weight. The weight, which is heavier than the shot put, weighs 20 pounds for the women and 35 for the men. That just can't be easy.

With the annual Heptagonals, which act as conference championships for the teams, this coming weekend at Princeton, the throwers are exacting their techniques as a final preparation.

Both Johnson and Hughes are favored to vie for the meet's top positions. Now, the time for training is over and the mental preparation plays a key role.

"When I compete I think about what I need to do in the circle," said Hughes. "I need to have everything technically perfect.

"Hopefully, I will go in to Princeton and throw better than I ever have before. That's always my goal, a personal record."

Johnson holds on to similarly-high ambitions for the competition.

"If I perform up to my potential, I could get as high as second in the shot put and third in the weight," said Johnson.

Johnson, a wily veteran thrower from Wyoming, attributes much of the success of this year's throwers to a new addition to the coaching staff.

"I've been working a lot with Shawn Scheisher," said Johnson, "who was an All-American thrower himself, from Illinois. He's extremely knowledgeable about throwing and competing."

Scheisher, who joined head coach Paul Turner this year, is currently enrolled at the Graduate School of Education. He has assisted the throwers, high-jumpers, and pole vaulters. In so doing, he has changed the dynamics of the team.

"Shawn has brought a much needed structure to the team," said Johnson. "He's really helped Coach Turner out by taking responsibility for some of the team himself."

Essentially, the throwers train only in their small group but still intermingle with their track and field teammates. It seems like this new balance, brought by Scheisher, has given them the extra personal attention they need.

"Unfortunately, Shawn isn't going to be here next year," Johnson said, "because the grad program is only a year long. But we are all learning as much as we can from him while he's here."

For Johnson, that learning experience includes changing her throwing technique completely.

"I just started to spin when I throw," said Johnson. "Before I always used to glide. When you glide one day you are on and one day you're just off, but by spinning I have become much more consistent in my throws.

"Sarah [Link] has been working on the weight this year. It is a new event for her and she has made incredible strides in her technique. Actually, Ken, Tarek, Sarah and I have all thrown well this year."

A new coach is not the only reason for the improvements of some of the throwers. Sometimes a little luck never hurts.

"Before, I never had the opportunity to throw well because I was constantly injured," said Hughes. "In the latter part of my freshman year and my sophomore year I was hurt."

In addition to intimidating the competition, health gave Hughes the great performances which have impressed his teammates.

"Ken had a huge personal best last weekend," said Johnson. "He threw 56 feet which is amazing for any Ivy League thrower."

The throwers in general hope to augment a strong overall showing at the heptagonals by the Crimson.

"The women's team could potentially win the meet," said Johnson. "At our meet against Yale and Princeton, we beat Princeton by three points. They dominated last year, so we were really excited about that because we know we could win Heps this year."

The men's abilities are equally high.

"We have done better this year than any other since I've been here," said Hughes.

Whatever the outcome of the heptagonals, it appears that this was a watershed season for the Crimson throwers. The outlook for the outdoor season, which begins during spring break, looks even better with the additions to the team of freshman Chris Clever and junior Caroline Johnston.