The IAAF Golden League Tour with 7 meets ended just a while ago. Trine Hattestad from Norway won 5 meets in javelin throw (WR 69.48 m), and shared 50 kg of Gold together with Maurice Greene USA sprint, Gail Devers USA hurdles, Hicham El Guerrouj MOR mid. distance, and Tatyana Kotova RUS long jump.

Track & Field is an impressive athletic area, with many tremendous achievements. I'm grateful you're willing to share with us your experiences from the Throwing part of T&F.

Would you please start with an introduction of yourself? 
I am Gary Kelmenson (50), I have 2 brothers Ron (60) and Howie (55), I am married to Francine, she has a son, Bruce. I'm the owner of KEL Throwing Club in Santa Cruz, and I have coached at the Junior College level and High School in California.

What is Track & Field?
It is a sport of running or walking on the track. There are field events, shot, discus, javelin, hammer, heavy weight throws, also high jump, pole vault, long jump and triple jump.

How do you train to become a good Thrower?
Basic strength training in the weight room, best to do free weights not machines and develop basic power then add to that Olympic lifts to develop quickness and coordination. Then spend much time in the ring throwing and mastering the technique of the throw. It can take years to get the body movement down to a point of just getting in the ring and throwing the way you want to move your body to maximize your performance in the event.

Geoff Capes ENG - record in Shot Put from 1980, his throw on 21.68 m is beaten...
Adam Nelson USA has the official best Shot Put throw in the last 4 years worldwide with 22.12 m, also Andy Bloom and C J Hunter are currently elite Shot Putters in USA.
Dylan Armstrong CAN is doing great with the Hammer in the Jr. class, Lance Deal USA is a great Hammer thrower in the Sr. class.
Lars Riedel GER a legend with the discus, and Virgilius Alekna LIT a giant discus thrower.

Who would you name as true Legends in Throwing?
I am choosing masters people not current elite athletes, I focus more on masters than open.
Stew Thompson (67), only thrower over 60 to throw the 56lb weight over 30' ever. Excellent hammer thrower, discus and shot. 
Ladislav Pataki (54), world champion weight pentathlon, shot, discus, national champion, hammer, shot in Eugene, Ore this August.
Also Tore Gustafsson (38), 3 time Olympian and 3 time NCAA American Champion. He is a great person, very willing to help and Coach other throwers. He is now a Chiropractor in San Jose and starting up since he recently became a doctor.

Could you tell us about your Throwing Club and who trains there?
KEL Club is an American Track & Field Club that specializes in the throwing events of the sport. I administrate the Club with an athletic facility at my home in the mountains of Santa Cruz. This facility is designed to handle the heavy weight throws, hammer, discus, javelin, shot. This is the only personally owned facility in the United States for Track & Field and has competition events on a monthly basis.

KEL Club is a small group of people who train here in santa Cruz and enjoy the throws part of T&F. There is no attempt to get a large group of people who are half-interested in throwing. The people here are 100% focused on solid performance in the throwing events.

Athletes who have trained here include some of the best in the world. It has been the training site of Tore Gustafsson, 3 time Olympian in the hammer throw for Sweden since 1993, he has also been training here for his 4th Olympics 2000. Last year Tuborg Gutcheck from Hungary came here to train and he finished with one of the best throws in the world for 1999.

Tell us about your achievements in the Throwing Sport?
My experience as an athlete...
1991 World Masters Champion in the Weight Pentathlon at Turku, Finland.
1993 World Masters Championships in the Weight Pentathlon in Miaziaki, Japan - 3rd  place. 
3 time National Masters Champion in the Hammer - 82-84-90.
This August I was 3rd in the American National Masters Championships in the Hammer with a throw of 44.42 m in the 50-54 age group.
You are a Legend yourself Mr. Kelmenson!

We often read controversies between sport and politics, is there anything you'd like to tell us about unfairness in your sport?
A large part why I started Kelfield, was to have a place we can train without the political interference of people who are negative to the throwing events. This talk of negativity may be strange to you but there is a reality here that what we do is actually discouraged. We too find it difficult to understand, but we have created our own world to generate success despite all efforts to make sure we do not succeed.
We are not doing it for universal approval and strutting around. Many people talk a good story, we are out there doing it. It is something that the measuring tape can do the talking. Either you can do it or you can't. There is no politics in that. No matter how much money you have, you can not buy a good throw, you have to train hard, be in shape, be healthy, uninjured, and perform. Either you can or you can't. That simple. That is the greatness of the sport. No style points, no judges to determine you have not been in the sport to "earn" victory. You show up and compete, you either throw far or you don't, the longest throw wins, the second longest is 2nd. Simple, just perform.

The T&F world is not all great here either, I had coached at Foothill College in Los Altos Hills and was the School Record Holder in the Hammer. The first athlete I coached broke my school record. 
But, we were putting holes in the Football practice field and they demanded we leave. With an event on the schedule and no place to train, I made the decision to buy a big enough place to have my own facility. I have done that, because of being thrown out of all other facilities in the area because the events damaged the facility. Even though it is a legitimate event in an Olympic sport I was told to "Get the hell out of here" - so in 1993 Kelfield was opened and since then has put on almost 90 competitions here and has been the training site of some very good people. So the genesis of the project did not come from positive experiences relating to the sport but negative ones. Either build my own facility or quit being a hammer thrower. This reality will be shown when you look at the results of the hammer in the Olympics, I expect very little American success, the sport is being discouraged here by people who are putting forth that they are part of the sport or the officials of the sport.
These are heavy words Gary, it's hard to believe that someone actually tries/wants to damage sport disciplines. I've read about individual persons and federations who do great damage to their sport, and thereby destroy the credibility of the sport as well. This is very unfortunate. 

Does anyone from Kelfield participate in The Olympic Games in Sydney Australia?
Like I said, Tore Gustafsson was training here before the Olympics. I basically have been focusing on masters athletics and not the elite people. I didn't go to see the Olympics, but I will be going to the World Masters Championships in Brisbane in July 2001. This will be to compete myself.

You sent me an entry form for the competitions held on Kelfield this year (don't think I will participate, although it would be fun trying a "2 lb" Hammer :)
As I see, from mid September to the end of November, you will be traveling with your wife on East Coast Meets. I wish you Good Luck!
There will also be a Kelfield Meet, Saturday, December 16, 2000, starting at 10am.
Events: 56lb, 35lb, 25lb weight throw. Hammer. Shot. Discus. Javelin.

Anything you'd like to add, Gary?
Thank you for your interest in what Don and I do, there is no one here writing articles about what we do. Any and all will be greatly appreciated. Even if only a very few appreciate what is happening, that is just fine. 

To communicate with us here the e-mail is Kelfield@aol.com. We welcome any visitors who need a place to train.

Sincerely,
Gary Kelmenson 
5601 Empire Grade
Santa Cruz 95060
(831) 458-0300
Kelfield@aol.com

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