Brussels Diamond League

 The women’s discus diamond league final was yesterday in Brussels Belgium.  The diamond race in our event was won by Yarelis of Cuba.  But the last meet went to the young and on fire! Sandra of Croatia who threw a national record of 66.93 meters.  It was a great meet, sold out stadium of over 40,000 fans and some live music too, it was a great atmoshphere.  We were early in the program and the stadium was filling up as we competed.  I have been training hard since the London meet and it took me a few rounds to get into my competition groove, 6 rounds to say the least.  My last throw was my best throw and it would have been enough for 4th place but as competition goes a few others threw further in the final round and I finished in 6th place.  Next time I need the start with that throw and then build from there.  I feel pretty good though with the changes I made and now I have 2 more european meets to better my seasons best and maybe pr.  The 2010 diamond league is over and I fnished 4th in the overall race, a very consistent season but next year will be better. Final Meet Results

Paris Diamond League Meeting

  We arrived in Paris on Bastille day and our hotel is right next to the Eiffel Tower.  So we had prime seating for the Fireworks show that night.  It was really cool especially for me because I was out of the country for the 4th of July and I missed the fireworks this year, so joining in with the French wasn’t a bad consolation.  I had some pretty good training sessions this week and I felt really good going into the meet.  As usual we had a loaded field of discus throwers.  I opened up with 60.77 and then 60.83 meters and pretty much stayed consistent over 60 meters.  I liked the consistency but I know I have longer throws in me.  They will come, I have done a lot of work this season to set me up for the next 2 years and I just have to be patient.  Looks like I have 1 more meet coming up in Africa!!!! For Paris ResultsSuper excited because this is one continent I am yet to visit.Paris Results 

Brasschaat, Belgium

I’ve been in the Netherlands for a few days since my meet in Lausanne and it is hot over here, it’s been in the 90’s and no A/C.  I guess this is unusual heat for this part of the country. But I have been enjoying it.  There is a group of American distance runners training here at the same track and they were headed to a meet today in Belgium so I jumped in the van.  It was a throwing day today anyways, so why not get some measured.  Brasschatt here we come!… I have to tell you the hour and half drive with no A/C was awesome!  I had a great sweat going. When we got there I ran into several other American athletes and it was great to see lots of people I hadn’t seen in a while.  I had a lot of fun cheering for everyone in there events and the best part, another American discus thrower.  Becky finished 1st and I took 2nd we had a tough circle to throw from.  It was super rough, which means slow, and a little warped, so all things considering we did really well.  We both used this as a working meet making adjustments for the next meeting in Paris.  For our effort we got Belgium fries and Belgium beer after meet. I uploaded a few pictures here and on my home page….

IWC Madrid, Spain

  Today’s meet was interesting to say the least.  The women’s discus got started about 30 min late because the men’s hammer went long.  But we got about 15 min of warm up and there was a dark cloud moving our way.  We thought we might be able to finish before the rain came, but that didn’t happen.  By round 2 the thunder and lighting were on us.  We ran for cover there were about 50 of us cramped in a little holding cell.  Here is a picture of the room empty,  Imagine it full…After standing in this room for about 30 min or more they took us out to the track and resumed the meet, with no warm ups.  After the 3rd round was finished I asked can we stop until the lighting stops re-warmup maybe 2 throws and then finish with the final 3 attempts.  But the head referee didn’t want to make any accommodations for the weather and we threw in a lighting storm.  I don’t know about you?  But I have a problem throwing metal objects in lighting…  Anyways it was hard to find the rhythm after all that.  I did manage to throw a long throw in the 5th round about 63 meters and it was inches out of left sector.  Check the video in the side bar and notice all the water in the ring. I finished 7th with a throw of 55.47 meters, pretty much a career low today… Up next Lausanne, Switzerland July 8th. For full results click here or in english here A few pictures from the meet

Oslo Diamond League

  Our 2nd stop for the women’s discus in the new Diamond League was in Oslo, Norway today.  It’s absolutey beautiful here, lots a green trees, lakes, sunshine and a gorgeous stadium.  The scenery reminds me a lot of the Northwest.  It was about 70 degrees, perfect day for a competition.  We had another strong field of throwers today and a close competition.  I had 5 throws over 60 meters and very consistent with a best throw today of 61.80 meters.  During the meet I was in 2nd, 3rd, 5th and then back to 3rd.  Now have 1 point in the Diamond race.  The person with the most points in each event wins a cool diamond trophy at the end of the season. For Full Results Click Here Up next Diamond League Meeting in NY June 12th!!!

California Relays

  The newly relocated California Relays (Formerly known as Modesto Relays)  took place saturday May 29th in Sacramento, CA.  We had a great crowd to cheer us on in the women’s discus. The loudest person in the stands was my son Theo and that was awesome to hear him cheer for everyone.  He loves to get the crowd clapping so I helped him lead a few claps for a couple of my throws.  The weather was good and we had a great field of throwers.  I finished 2nd with a Seasons Best of 62.47 meters.  Check out runnerspace for videos and final results from the meet.  It was also great to watch training partners Kristin Heaston and Cory Martin compete as well.  Kristin was 2nd in the women’s shot put and Cory Martin was a double winner in the Hammer and Shot put. Up Next Diamond League Meeting in Oslo, Norway June 4th!!

Tucson Elite Throwers Meet

  We had a great women’s discus competition this weekend in Tucson, AZ.  The Thursday meet was a little flat but by saturday we were rocking and rolling.  The weather was HOT somewhere around 99 degrees and a nice breeze was blowing.  Becky was in the lead after round 1 but round three was pretty exciting.  Anna takes the lead at 60.80 meters Becky passes her with 60.84 meters and then I take the lead with 61.98 meters.  I held the lead until the 6th round then Gia set a personal best with 62.75 meters and Becky responds with 62 meters but not enough for the lead.  We had a great field with 6 women over 60 meters and no Suzy or Stephanie. I feel pretty good with my training and early meets so far.  I will continue to work hard and really let this season be a building block for 2011 and 2012.  Up next California Relays in Sacramento, CA Click here for full results, Tucson Elite Results

Doha Diamond League Meeting

  Doha, Qatar was the 1st stop on this years new diamond league circuit.  It’s a long trip from the US about 18 hours of flying and an 8 hour time zone difference.  So you can imagine that your body’s going to be a little stiff from the travel and your sleep schedule gets a little altered. I really enjoyed the meet, we had a great crowd and loaded women’s discus field.  It wasn’t are usual 6 throw competition because we only got 4 throws and we were all a little confused when there was no order change for the final round.  We usually get reordered for the final round throwing worst to best.  But I started as the 1st thrower and stayed the 1st thrower.  The competition was pretty close I was 7 centimeters from 3rd and I finished 4th with a 3rd round throw of 62.26meters.  But it was great catching up with all the other athletes and sharing stories of what’s happening in everyone’s life. I worked out the day before the meet with our USA shot putters and they are a funny group of guys.  After we finished our track workouts we headed into the weight room, which is typical for throwers to do.  I didn’t have much to do because I had just done a lot of bounding at the track but I wanted to get to stretches and movement stuff with weights.  I mainly cheered the guys on in there lifting.  The best part was spotting Christian Cantwell who was benching over 250kilos and didn’t really need a spot, not to mention that if he was to miss the lift there was no way I could save him.  Which is why he had me spot him, it kept him motivated through the work out.  I have a video I’ll get posted later this week. The evening before the meet we had a special diner were we all wore traditional arabic style of dress and local cuisine. I have to say the curry chicken was pretty good.  We were entertained with traditional music as well.  When you travel half way around the world for a 4 day trip it’s always nice to experience some of the culture while you’re there.  Here is a link on the meet, http://www.diamondleague-doha.com/Live-StartlistsResults/Overview/ Up next Tucson Elite…..

War Eagle Invitational 2010

I had my 2nd competition of season yesterday at the Auburn University, War Eagle Invitational.   We had a beautiful sunshiny day and about 20 women discus throwers.  My series got off to a rough start, but I bounced back by the 5th round and threw 60.86 meters for a 1st place finish.  I’ve been training really hard and my timing is just starting to come around.   My training partner Will Conwell took 1st place in the men’s discus and Coach Clayton’s other throwers did really well.  Up next for me is the Drake Relays, which will be all the top US throwers.  Check out the video from the meet, courtesy of Will Conwell.  And the pictures are courtesy of Kristin Heaston who some with my camera for me.  For meet results

Washington Track and Field

The All-American thrower is just the fourth Husky woman to win the award. April 12, 2010WALNUT CREEK, Calif. - Junior javelin thrower Brooke Pighin garnered the first ever Pac-10 Women’s Field Athlete of the Week award of her career, the conference office announced today. Pighin is the first women’s thrower to earn the award since three-time Olympian Aretha (Hill) Thurmond.Pighin, a native of Port Alberni, British Columbia, took the javelin title at the Pepsi Team Invitational this past Saturday at the University of Oregon’s Hayward Field. She threw a season-best 166-feet, 10-inches, and no other competitor from Oregon, Texas A&M, or Missouri was within 10 feet of her winning mark, which came on her second attempt.The toss was six-feet farther than her season-opening throw just one week earlier at the Texas Relays. Pighin now moves up to sixth in the NCAA this season. In 2009, Pighin placed seventh in the javelin throw at the NCAA Championships, earning her first All-America honor. She ranks second on the UW career top-10 list with the new javelin implement.Pighin is just the fourth Husky woman to win the weekly honor in any event, joining Thurmond, hurdler Ashley Lodree, and distance runner Anita Campbell, who won the award last season. A total of 15 Huskies have combined to win the award on 20 occasions. 2010 PAC-10 TRACK AND FIELD ATHLETES OF THE WEEKMEN’S TRACK - April 12 - Ashton Eaton, ORE (110m hurdles/long jump/4×100). MEN’S FIELD - April 12 - Ryan Whiting, ASU (SP). WOMEN’S TRACK - April 12 - Amber Purvis, ORE (100m/200m/4×100). WOMEN’S FIELD - April 12 - Brooke Pighin, WASH (JT).    Article on GOHuskies.com Congratulations Brooke, Keep up the great work and all the Huskies out there are pulling for you!!

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