One Road Leads to Rome

1956 Gold Medalist Hal Connolly

I am lucky enough to have been coached by two Olympic medalists throughout my career: Harold “Hal” Connolly (’56) and Anatoli Bondarchuk (’72).  It is interesting to see how many similarities they have in their approach to the sport despite their differences in upbringing (Boston vs. the Soviet Union).  First, they are both very resourceful.  I have seen Hal at work in his shop developing various makeshift implements to throw onto astroturf fields.  Dr. B is well known within our training group for jerry-rigging hammers.  If we only have a 6-kilogram hammer and he needs a 6.5-kiogram hammer, he’ll just strap on enough bolts and washers for it to be the desired weight.  If we run out of handles, he’ll find some scrap metal and weld his own.  His solution isn’t always the safest (I’ve often been thrown to the ground as my hammer breaks), but it allows us to continue with training.

The second thing they have in common is a creative and inquisitive mind.  At 77, Hal never stops trying to learn.  He will attend clinics all over to hear other people’s training philosophies.  He will constantly ask me about my training and how Dr. B prepares his athletes.  This is not new either.  Back in the day he was known to revolutionize technique.  As an athlete and coach, Hal would always insert new exercises into his routine in order to find the right path to success.  He once even tried to throw with elevated platform-like shoes on the theory that a higher point of release would add to one’s distance.  That theory didn’t pan out, but many others did.  Similarly, Dr. B was also known for his technical advances.  I also don’t think he’s ever met a training exercise he didn’t see some use for.  He constantly strives to find the exercises that best mimic the movements of the hammer throw and is always trying out new things on us.  Many coaches would probably think they had found the key to success after coaching an athlete to a world record that has lasted for 23 years.  Not Dr. B.  He has told us that he has learned so much more since that time and, with the right athlete, the record could be even further.

Finally, both Hal and Dr. B have attained their success despite the athletic bureaucracies that place hurdles in front them.  A lot of individuals attain “success” by climbing the vast bureaucratic ladder within a sport.  However, while they gain a fancy title, their credentials remain thin.  Hal and Dr. B attained success by being successful athletes and coaching successful athletes.  This meant stepping on people’s toes in order to get what their athletes needed.  At the end of the day they may not have a fancy title, but they both have accomplished much more than any bureaucrat.  And both are still at it.  Before the Beijing Olympics, all Canadian athletes were supposed to report to a long training camp in humid Singapore.  Dr. B put his foot down and was able to let Dylan Armstrong stay at home until right before the games.  It paid off as Dylan threw a national record and missed the podium by a mere centimeter.  Other top athletes choked.  Hal has been hard at work pushing for the hammer throw to gain wider acceptance at the youth level in America.  He is constantly brushed off by various committees within USATF, but that does not deter him.  He wants to see the results of his efforts during his life time and is working hard to see that changes to the sport come now, not eventually.  That drive set the scene for America to claim both gold and silver at the World Junior Championships last year, marking the first American gold medal in international competition since his gold 52 years prior.

These two men are an inspiration to myself and my continued efforts to reach the Olympics.  A picture of Hal hangs in my room and reminds me every day that nothing is easy, but that everything is attainable with the right amount of work.