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Throwing With Vanessa

By Emma Dodsworth on April 20, 2021

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Since last year the track season was not able to take place due to Covid-19 reasons, everyone has been very excited for the track season this year. I chose to interview a member of the 2021 Putnam County track team. Vanessa Bondy is in three track events; shot put, discus, and throwers relay. I went to one of her track meets this year on March 30, 2021, and she placed 4th in girls' discus throw and I thought she was very good. For those who don't know how it works, Vanessa said, “shot put is where you have an 8-pound ball that you tuck into your neck and chuck as far as you can and you are measured on the distance from where the ball lands. Discus is very similar to shot put; you toss a disc into a field and you can enter from anywhere but exit from the back. Take a step out of the ring, or throw it out of bounds, it is an immediate scratch.” When asked what her favorite track event was, she said that she did not have a favorite track event but she thinks she performs better in the shot put.

I asked her why she chose her track events and she responded with, “because I like to think that I'm strong and I feel like I have the muscles to do it and I'm a really good thrower but I'm not sure if I like running as much”. I don't know about you but I've always wondered how track practice works, do they split up or all do the same things? I asked Vanessa and she said that she runs the mandatory lap around the track with the other girls and then spends 30-45 minutes between shot put and discus trying to get a new PR. When I asked Bondy about what she enjoys and likes about being in her event, she said that she likes that it challenges her to always get stronger and learn new techniques that she would otherwise never learn and also the challenge of it against all of the other people that throw. I think that in everything you do, there are things you do and don't like, so I asked her what she didn't like about her events; “There's nothing that I don't like, it's just shot... and disc.” Usually in other sports there are big competitors like how Milan vs Putnam is usually a game everyone goes to for football so I wondered if there were any competitors like that or similar for track or track events. When asked this, Vanessa said that really, it is anyone who steps into the ring.

The Putnam Press