Posted: January 25, 2006

Athletics: Adam Nelson Teleconference Excerpts

On Wednesday, January 25, USA Track & Field hosted a media teleconference with reigning World Outdoor men's shot put champion Adam Nelson, who will face a world-class field Saturday evening at the 2006 Reebok Boston Indoor Games.

The first event of the 2006 Visa Championship Series, The Reebok Boston Indoor Games will be televised January 29 on ESPN2 from 3:00-5:00 p.m. Eastern Time.

Adam Nelson

The Olympic silver medalist in 2000 and 2004, and the 2001 and 2003 World Outdoor Championships silver medalist, Nelson won the 2005 World Outdoor title on his first attempt in the final when he heaved the shot 21.73 meters/71 feet, 3.50 inches. Nelson's win at the World Outdoor Championships helped propel him to the year-end #1 world ranking by Track & Field News, the third time during his career that he's achieved the top world ranking.

A two-time USA Indoor champion and the 2001 World Indoor silver medalist, Nelson will face a strong field in Boston that includes three-time World Outdoor champion, two-time Olympic medalist and 2005 Indoor Visa Championship Series winner John Godina. 2004 World Indoor champion Christian Cantwell also is in the field, along with 2004 Olympian and World Indoor silver medalist Reese Hoffa. All four competitors ended the 2005 season ranked in the top six in the world.

At last year's Reebok Boston Indoor Games, Nelson wrested the lead for good from Cantwell on his second throw of 20.97m/68-9.75. The two-time Olympic Trials champion was not content with that mark, however, as he popped a giant throw of 21.66m/71-0.75 in the third round to secure the win.

To listen to a replay of the USATF media teleconference with Adam Nelson, visit: www.usatf.org/news/audio/2006-01-25.asx.

Q: How has your life changed since winning the gold medal at the 2005 World Outdoor Championships?

A: The biggest difference that I've noticed is that I have a new training partner. We have a young kid, Reuben Williams, who moved here, and with Reese (Hoffa), Reuben and I all training together, I think it's a pretty good combination and it seems to be working real well right now for the three of us. Other than that, there really haven't been any changes.

Q: How healthy are you leading into this weekend's competition?

A: I have a couple little aches and strains that are pretty common at this time of year, but nothing seems to be interfering with my ability to throw right now. I'm in great shape otherwise, physically and technically I'm in a lot better shape at this time of year than I was last year. As you may or may not be aware of, last year I opened up with a seasonal best and personal best indoors. I'm hoping to exceed my personal best indoors in the next two weeks and have a nice buildup to the indoor nationals and indoor worlds.

Q: What goals have you set for yourself this year?

A: Because there's not a major championship for us this year, there is the World Cup, and I guess that's kind of the forgotten major championship, not to take anything away from the prestige of that event, but there's no world championship or Olympic Games this year. So my primary focus this year is to really come out in the indoors and continuing the trend that I established at the end of last season. I've got some big goals for this indoor season. One is to be ready for the indoor worlds and make that team, and two is to set a personal best indoors and I think right now I'm in shape to do that, and I think the indoor world record is in grasp if I'm in that kind of shape.

Q: Do you have a sponsor?

A: No sponsor yet.

Q: Are you going to be on eBay?

A: I don't know yet. We'll find out. Not through the indoor season. I may have to fall back on that during the outdoor season if nothing turns up. I'm hoping not to fall back on eBay.

Q: With shot put competition in the U.S. being so tough these days, does that give you extra motivation to do your best?

A: It's actually a double-edged sword. On one hand it's a big advantage because you're not fazed by any other competition anywhere you go from a competitor standpoint. On the other hand, the bragging rights and the pride of being the best in your country can sometimes throw you off the much bigger and more important goals of the championships and winning gold medals later in the season. For me right now, my main focus has been to get in shape for indoor nationals and indoor worlds. The competition will be great because it will obviously be a high caliber competition in an environment where I tend to excel at. The indoor competitions create a very intimate environment for the shot put and I think all the U.S. athletes tend to excel in those environments. Combine that with the level of competitors that we're going to have at this competition (Reebok Boston Indoor Games) and I really do think that what that really does is allow us to get some really big marks early on, even when we might not be peaked or primed for it.

Q: What did winning the world outdoor title mean to you?

A: It did mean quite a lot to me. I'm not gonna lie. To me, maintaining the lead at a world class level of competition is very important, but the medals are what people remember when they think about the sport and your legacy. There's nothing worse than being remembered as the guy that could have done it, or should have done it, but never did. I think that ways heavy on many people when they find themselves in that position, and it ends up affecting them the rest of their lives. I guess I never really thought about it that way until that moment when after it happened and I thought, wow, this really solidifies or validates a lot of the sacrifices that I've made to get to this point. It was a tremendous feeling, totally overwhelming. It's empowering me to push farther and harder into the future.

Q: Can you remember what you did when you realized you won the gold medal?

A: Aside from bawling like a baby (laughter)? Aside from that I don't really remember. It gets kind of grey. I remember trying to gain my composure for the last throw and trying to hold back the tears and emotions and such. When I got in the circle I wanted to put an honest effort together and finish it off like a world champion should, and it was all I could do just to hold my technique and get to the circle. When it left my hand I knew it was over and I was the world champion, and then all my emotions kind of took over at that point.

Q: You won the world title with your first attempt in the final. What does a big throw early in the competition do for you and to your opponents?

A: It establishes control, I think more then anything else. If you can get a big throw off in your first round that establishes you as the definite leader and a contender for the gold medal, or whatever the victory is for that day. Everybody ends up chasing you and it's much easier to set the tone than to chase after somebody else. In that situation I wanted to nail the first throw. The weather was changing rapidly and I felt it was the most important throw of the competition. If I nail this first throw it is over. I nailed it and it was a good throw for me, and if it's a good throw for me chances are it would be good enough to win. I've always believed that if I'm in shape to throw a solid throw or a personal or seasonal best, then chances are nobody's going to be able to compete with me at that point.

Q: How much longer will you be competing?

A: Definitely through 2008 and possibly through 2009.

Q: You had a monster throw over 71 feet in winning the Reebok Boston Indoor Games last year. Do you enjoy throwing at the Reggie Lewis Center?

A: I've always thrown well there. Even going back to college, before it had its renovations, I've always thrown well there and I really do look forward to competing there. They've got a great crowd, they've got a great throwing environment, the circle is fantastic and for whatever reason I seem to click there, so I'm looking forward to it again this year.

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