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YF\$=*)A6UTF@ѫ?QiqjsxU"[ @} ]5O"ˉy }r[k)E5"/„K 'ڕfNۛj8$WS onp5WǖZyBqۭkIٍU'=(qzv褕O~޹5;0ӟCo5`q;I֮Z-* gZ(bw08'ފ6%t%vadnj;ʶ2n#R"FEBOrjD'RXwFzuf6_zaG̳Fra~kK#!09kÞ7]xVGV[8Zm]a!(+ڢpW^F:b}HKiC@AY ,@9C=N b8\ sQ\ZÀPb9_}v23s`S~X&7 lVY??̫'5AG<-HM7`iLMLҟhp#bf(_.bl9Pދ0d^0qXImV Jq;~Uz[xݔeמY5:Dr1%ݏ{}6WbFOT//Χbo~d< w)Ua9쎈R\fkn&$V+OO\gִⵏl`V=MHҠr⚅dΫ`7$VG4cvfm0E,~\V||D`\~F@sORIt|ҔY,N3ۊ|vsθeв`HӞ;ܰ iH]XL<Ӛ 7t=)sOcZqkϿВrp='qڎ`= dם}\g$H4H9y>\,z)Px:z,W,7NIߎ;`j䁜;sqErbVv+@rI Ҿϥ ݷ夯p+Rܳj?>'<ya@>keG–ٌ9'OU f^vB#{*v#Hpz($Pe2(|bA֩I.`P<i;pG4Q@ kD|(C=*<*>Q@ >Ғx s I68m>Q@%OrKn(يA^֊(using her three turn spin technique, hurled that hammer towards the blue sky, setting a new American record of 220 feet 1 inch, third best in the world! Incredible, for someone who has only been throwing the hammer for three years.<br>Tapio Kuusela, an Olympic weightlifting and powerlifting champion from Finland (who also happens to be an old lifting buddy of BFS President, Greg Shepard), is Amy's coach. He commented on Amy's technique by explaining, "Most throwers use four turns, but Amy will never have to learn a fourth turn because she reaches her max speed in three. The fourth turn was designed for people who are quick, but not explosive. Being explosive is talent." Kuusela is a former BYU All-American hammer thrower himself.<br>Since Amy picked up the hammer in 1996 she has only gotten better. It is amazing that Amy has only been throwing the hammer for such a short time and is doing so awesome. This last year she placed second in the hammer throw and fourth in the shop put at the NCAA finals. She competed in the US Track and Field Championships and took second place. Having so much success, she was selected to participate in the Pan-Am Games and took third. While competing in the Goodwill Games in New York, she won the bronze medal. Coach Kuusela said, "Amy is a very talented athlete that knows what she wants. Good athletes need to be able to think and understand and Amy does a good job at that. She has lots of potential with a good power level, but it is not fully converted at this point. As a young athlete still in the beginning phase of hammer throwing, she has a real shot at breaking the world record."<br>Weight training is very crucial to a thrower's success. Coach Kuusela explained, "the power clean is the most beneficial lift you can perform for the hammer throw, but remember, as a hammer thrower, she only trains with weights, to help benefit the throw."<br>So what is the key to Amy's success in the hammer throw? Many coaches and teammates claim she has great technique and I will agree to a point, but, the key comes from her great explosive power, which she has developed through training with heavy weights. Amy is the strongest female athlete I have ever met in my life. I watched her power clean 220 for 3 reps with perfect form as if it were nothing. Then we went over to the squat rack where she worked her way up to 410. She was just recovering from the flu and said she wasn't feeling that great, I can't imagine how she trains when she is feeling well and at total capacity. I was disappointed to hear from Coach Kuusela, that I had just missed watching her squat 520 for a new personal record, a few weeks ago. Since then, Amy has moved into a different training phase where she focuses on taking the brute strength that was gained from heavy weight lifting and incorporating it into throwing the 8.8 pound ball they call the hammer.<br>Amy loves to explode on the weights. Her favorite exercise is the power clean. Her best is 253 lbs.! Since her attention is focused on the hammer throw she doesn't bench press, but she has done 275 lbs.<br>Many athletes in this day and age have stumbled across road blocks in their lives, yet managed to overcome these trials to be labeled champions. Perhaps the rough and rocky road they have been forced to walk is what polished them into first class, fine tuned athletes. Amy is an athlete that has had to work hard to overcome adversity. When Amy was in high school her parents divorced. As we talked about overcoming hardships and coping with negative aspects in life, Amy commented by saying, "Everyone has obstacles and you can make them to be as big as you want, it's just the way you go about handling them. The important thing is how you react and deal with the problems, that's what makes you a better person. I could have used my Dad's drinking problem and my parent's divorce as an excuse not to be happy