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Airman earns spot
on Olympic track, field team
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LACKLAND
AIR FORCE BASE, Texas -- First Lt.
James Parker, an Air Force world-class
athlete from Malmstrom Air Force Base,
Mont., earned a spot on the U.S.
Olympic track and field team July 12
with a hammer throw of 254 feet, 6
inches. (Courtesy photo)
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by Tech. Sgt. J.C.
Woodring
Air Force Print News
7/17/2004 - SAN
ANTONIO -- First Lt. James Parker, an
Air Force world-class athlete from Malmstrom Air Force
Base, Mont., earned a spot on the U.S. Olympic track
and field team July 12 with a hammer throw of 254
feet, 6 inches.
“I came into the Air Force to serve my country,”
said Lieutenant Parker, who has been throwing the
hammer for 10 years. “To represent the Air Force and
the country on the athletic side is ... the biggest
honor of my life.”
In the preliminaries of the U.S. Olympic track and
field trials in Sacramento, Calif., on July 10, each
of the 24 competitors was allowed three throws to
determine advancement to the finals. People who throw
farther than 236-3 are automatically qualified for the
finals.
Lieutenant Parker said he had a “mental edge” on
the other athletes going into the competition because
he had farther marks than the others and was favored
to make the team.
He said he also felt a lot of pressure because he
witnessed several other favored athletes not make the
team.
“On the day, you never know what will happen,”
Lieutenant Parker said. “It really was a
nerve-racking situation.”
As the last competitor to throw in the first round,
Lieutenant Parker stepped into the circle and tossed a
240-3, the longest throw of the day. He then sat back
and analyzed his competition for the finals.
In the first round of the finals, the lieutenant
established the benchmark of 245-1 on his first throw
and increased it to 251-4 on his final throw of the
round.
During the final round, Lieutenant Parker tossed his
best throw of the day, 254-6. Winning this event and
his 259-10 throw during a meet at Brigham Young
University on June 26 placed Lieutenant Parker on this
year’s Olympic team. (Information provided by Air
Force Services Agency)
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Army Sgt. John Nunn pulls away from Air Force Capt.
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USA in the Olympic Games at Athens, Greece. Photo by
Tim Hipps |
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High resolution photo. |
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