Quote:
Originally Posted by Nottom
How often does a non-pro come along and put up competitive scores? Maybe not for everything, but even for a couple events.
Any one who was/is a decent shot putter can come along and be quite competitive in that stones, since it's basically the same event. Not surprising, Brian Oldfield holds the Highland Games World Record in the Open Stone, and it was set in 1979.
We had
Cory Martin come out and throw last year with us and he got close to the stone record. He threw at Auburn and is a Nike sponsored (i think still?) pro shot putter and hammer thrower now, throwing real close to 70' in the shot earlier this year in a few meets, and iirc finished 4th in the indoor world champs a couple months ago. So he whooped us in the stone, but after that it was our turn...
High level oly hammer throwers usually can do ok right from the start, just because of the skill set they possess.
Outside of that, no one really ever comes out and does well or competitive (obv based on who you're competing against that day), just because the events are so heavy and so unique. Many a big strong guy has come out thinking "it doesn't look so hard", only to end up trying not to fall down the whole day. I was one of those guys, lol.
There are about 1-3 guys per year who turn Pro from the amateur ranks, but no one in the last two years or so that has really been ready imo. It takes time to plug all the leaks and make sure every event is solid.