 |
| Throws Coach Tapio Kuusela (right) with Ilse Kaaja (left) |
Kuusela is a pioneer among throws coaches. Former Utah all-conference hammer thrower Becky Riddle stated that Kuusela literally wrote the book on hammer throwing.
"He'd basically written everything down about how to throw the hammer. He started it out with, 'People will pay for these secrets. Don't tell anybody. Don't show this to anybody.' I kind of just laughed at it. As the years progressed I learned people really would pay for his secrets. When we'd compete against BYU you could kind of see all the coaches trying to listen in. His knowledge and depth of understanding about how to throw the hammer, it's superior."Most announcements like this are usually made when a long tenured coach like Kuusela retires or is replaced. But this situation is a little different. Coach Kuusela was, for lack of a better term, "forced" into retirement because the University of Utah wants to focus more on sprints and distance events rather than throws. Additionally, Utah will not be hiring a replacement throws coach.
There are no known demerits against Kuusela, who served as interim head coach in 2005 and is reportedly well-liked by his athletes. The decision to let him go after this season signifies and increased focus on distance running, where Kepler and the athletics administration believe Salt Lake's altitude gives the team a natural advantage. They will hire a distance coach this summer...Kepler sees it as an opportunity to specialize: USC is known as a sprint school, and Utah would like to be known as a distance school, a la Colorado.OK, you want to start competing against the likes of USC and Colorado. That's understandable. Having a specialty as a school can be a valuable thing, and yes it's true, the elevation gives the University of Utah a distinct training advantage for distance runners. But it's another quote from the Utah athletics administration that has myself, and many of my fellow track heads curious. When speaking about future throwers joining the team Utah Deputy Athletic Director Kyle Brennan stated:
If we have an accomplished student-athlete that wants to come here as a thrower, we have a spot on the team. We would welcome them. The university could even recruit more throwers. There just wont be a paid throwing coach.Huh?
How do they expect throwers to want to come to Utah without a throws coach? Perhaps Riddle said it best:
You're not getting rid of the throwing program - but you're getting rid of your throwing coach? That's a hard sell.It's safe to assume that it's too hard of a sell. Say goodbye to your throwing program Utes. At this point, even if they were to change their minds and decided to hire a new throws coach, any reasonably intelligent recruiter would be able to sway that potential recruit by marketing Utah as indifferent towards throwers. It's sad, but it's the truth.
It's even more sad when you realize that the University of Utah scored 14 total team points at the PAC-12 Championships last week, and of those 14 points, throwers accounted for ALL of them. Yes, you read that right. All 14 points were scored by throwers. Not sprinters. Not distance runners. Throwers. Sophomore Ilse Kaaja placed 3rd overall in the hammer throw, accounting for 6 points, while Megan Glassman, another sophomore, placed 2nd overall in the javelin and scored 8 points. Both of these women have two more years of eligibility left and are currently Utah's ONLY sources for points at the PAC-12 meet. So with that knowledge, choosing to no longer have a throws coach to continue their development seems like a strange move to me.
I'm a former thrower. I was recruited out of high school in Missouri as a thrower and when they found out I could run a little too, they made me a decathlete. If Utah needs a throws coach, I would be more than happy to volunteer my time. Just call me guys! I'll be waiting by my phone for your call. *twiddles thumbs*
0 comments:
Post a Comment