By Terry Mosher
Editor, Sports Paper
Port Orchard’s Nolan Van Amen won the age 13-14 shot put at the USATF National Junior Olympic Track and Field Championships held Wednesday at North Carolina A&T in Greensboro, N.C. on Wednesday. Van Amen threw the shot put 59-04.75 to edge out six others who threw over 50 feet.
Van Amen, who competes for Raw Speed II of Port Orchard, bested runner-up Gabriel Oladipo of The Wings Track Club from Missouri City, Texas, who threw the shot 58-06.
It wasn’t easy, said his coach, Glenn Wachtman. Van Amen, who will be a freshman this fall at South Kitsap High School, was sitting in fourth place after two throws. He nailed his winning throw on his third attempt, but then fouled on his last three throws.
“It was pretty dramatic,” Wachtman said. “Out of his first six throws he fouled on four of them. It seemed like he was real anxious on his first throw. He lost his balanced and stepped out (fouled). He kind of overthrew it maybe a little bit.
“Then he settled down on the second throw and just made a mark (53-06) so he would make the finals. On his third throw he let it go and that is when he got his (winning throw).”
NOLAN VAN AMEN
Wachtman said he thought Nolan tried too hard on his last three throws in the finals to reach the 60-foot mark and fouled all three attempts.
“And the heat was getting to him,” Wachtman said, “If you stay out in the heat more than 15 minutes it just saps all your energy.”
The throwers behind him made him sweat, if the high 80s and humid weather didn’t already make him do that, as they came close with their final three throws.
Oladipo got his second-place throw on his fourth attempt, pushing Adrian Piperi, who was competing unattached, from second to third in the final standings with a toss of 57-09. Samuel Welch’s final throw of 56-09.25 was good for fourth place. Welch also is competing unattached.
Wachtman said Van Amen was disappointed in his distance, and it wasn’t until his dad (Gerald) came over and gave him a big hug that it finally set in he had won a national championship.
“His dad put his arms around him and Nolan kind of started crying a little bit,” said Wachtman, “and that is kind of cool.”
Wachtman has two other competitors at nationals. Troy Delgado ran in the 200 in the 15-16 age bracket (he will be a junior this fall at SK) and finished 40th out of 50 runners, running his second best time of 23.04 (his PR is 22.86).
Again, heat was a factor
“(Troy) said when got in the blocks and put his fingers on the track it was extremely hot,” said Wachtman. “Then they had two false starts and I estimated he was on the track for 40 minutes, so that is not bad (considering the heat).”
Delgado will run the 100 Thursday (storm clouds were coming in late last night) and Wachtman expected Troy will probably finish about where he did today in the 200.
Another Raw Speed II member, Alexa James, a senior-to-be at SK, will also run Thursday. She will compete in the 2K steeplechase. James is a hurdler at SK.
Zach Smith of the Kitsap Flyers also ran the 200 Wednesday. He competed in the 17-18-age division and finished exactly in the middle of 56 runners at 28th with a time of 21.77. Smith will be a senior at Olympic High School this fall.
De’Andre Sincere of the Bremerton Jaguars finished fourth in the 200 in the 13-14-age division with a time of 22.93 to advance to the semifinals. The top time was posted by Isaiah Southerland of Triangle Track Club in Durham, N.C. He clocked 22.50. The semifinals were to be held Thursday.
Taylor Nichols and Maya Nichols of the Bremerton Jaguars also competed on Wednesday. Maya ran a 2:36.75 in the 800 to place 31th in the 11-12 age bracket. Taylor placed 42nd in the 9-10 age bracket of the 200 with a time of 30.37.