Acclaimed discus thrower puts Concordia on the map 12. April 08

PORTLAND, Ore. - This summer, all eyes will be focused on Oregon as Eugene hosts the U.S. Olympic trials and while many of the athletes will come from big schools with big resumes, a small school in Portland is getting on the map.

Concordia University is a small private school that many people outside of our area have never heard of. But recently, thanks to one of the world's greatest discus throwers, the school is making a lot of noise in the track and field world.

What makes Concordia's program special is that amid the overgrown grass and muddy ground that is currently their training field, you will find Mac Wilkins - a coach who was on four U.S. Olympic teams and who won a gold medal in the discus in 1976 (watch the YouTube video to see some of his throws).

Wilkins also won a silver medal in the 1984 Olympics and was inducted into the Oregon Sports Hall of Fame in 1994.


"It's really neat because a lot of people can't say that they have an Olympic gold medalist as their coach," said Annie Hess, who has trained with Wilkins since high school and is the school's top discus thrower.

Just having an Olympic gold medalist as your throw coach will put you on the map but this summer, Concordia will make another big splash then they open up a state-of-the-art throw center next to their current training center.



Odds are Concordia University would not be building the new center without the presence of legendary Olympian Mac Wilkins but what makes this story even more unique is that Wilkins probably would not be at the school without Hess.



"She suggested to our head coach, Randy Diezell, that he talk to me about this position," said Wilkins. "He was trying to recruit her."

"You know, he's been there and I'm trying to follow in his footsteps," she said.

Hess has thrown over 183 feet this year, which ranks her in the top 15 - good enough right now for her to qualify for the Olympic trials.

katu.com