AFTER THROWING 228-3 (69.59) in the qualifying round, the best toss at an Olympic Games since ’96, Valarie Allman appeared primed to defend her gold medal.
Then her first attempt in the final at Stade de France was not only a foul, but not very far, either.
“It felt so wrong!” Allman said. “I felt like a fish out of water. I was like, ‘I do not feel like a discus thrower in this moment.’ And I think discus is so much about rhythm and timing and feel, and I wasn’t quite calibrated.”
The 29-year-old Stanford alum quickly composed herself, uncorking a mark of 225-6 (68.74) on her next attempt.
“I knew that second throw was going to be enough to probably medal,” Allman said, “but I wanted more.”
She followed up with marks of 223-3 (68.06) and 228-0 (69.50), the latter the eventual winner.
“Slowly I started connecting more with my body and it felt like in round 4 things really started to align,” Allman said.
Her coach, Zeb Sion, said he could finally breathe again. “The first throw was a little scary,” he said, “but she rebounded.”
However, Allman took nothing for granted. After all, the world title eluded her last year when U.S. teammate Lagi Tausaga threw a personal best on her fifth throw to take the gold in Budapest.
And Allman knew there were “two lurking sharks who are very hungry.” They were Sandra Elkasević (nee Perković) of Croatia, the gold medalist in ’12 and ’16 and 2-time world champ in ’13 and ’17, and Bin Feng, the ’22 world champion and ’23 bronze medalist.
Elkasević threw a season-best 221-6 (67.51) in the third round to move from 4th into 2nd. Feng threw the same distance on her third attempt and had the superior second throw as Elkasević fouled her final three attempts.
“I am happy I am on this podium, it’s nice to be back,” said Elkasević, the “discus queen” who was 4th in Tokyo. “It’s also nice to be fighting with these girls.”
Elkasević said she doesn’t like when anyone beats her, but if someone had to do it, she was glad it was Allman and Feng. “I think the podium is reflective of who the top three women were this year, and that’s good,” Elkasević said.
Allman knew she had the gold medal wrapped up when she entered the ring for her final throw, and the 227-foot attempt (69.21) was her fourth legal throw that would have won the competition.
“Knowing I’d already won, it was hard fighting back tears, but I wanted to embrace the crowd,” said Allman, who was back on the top step of the podium after bronze and silver medals at the last two World Championships. “I wanted to embrace this moment at the Olympics and giving it my all. To end with a throw with the whole crowd engaged right there, that’s like one of those moments I’m going to remember forever.”
Allman came in a strong favorite with 4 of the top 5 performances on the world. Only Yaimé Pérez, who threw 239-0 (73.09) in the Ramona, Oklahoma, wind tunnel has a longer mark in ’24, but she did not compete in Paris. The ’19 world champion and Tokyo ’21 bronze medalist, Pérez was ineligible after defecting from Cuba to the United States two years ago.
Rio silver medalist Mélina Robert-Michon of France competed in her seventh Olympics at age 45, equaling the record number of appearances by a woman track athlete. She placed 12th.
Allman is the only American woman other than Lillian Copeland (’28 silver and ’32 gold) to win two medals in the discus and will be on home territory in 2028 in Los Angeles.
Elkasević said she’ll be ready.
“I know you’re a double [gold medalist] now,” the Croatian told Allman, “but now I’m a double and a bronze medalist.”
WOMEN’S DISCUS RESULTS
FINAL (August 05)
(temperature 84-82F/29-28C; humidity 36-37%)
1. Valarie Allman (US) 228-0 (69.50)
(f, 225-6, 223-3, 228-0, f, 227-0) (f, 68.74, 68.06, 69.50, f, 69.21);
2. Bin Feng (Chn) 221-6 (67.51)
(217-7, 212-7, 221-6, 220-3, 220-7, 216-6) (66.33, 64.80, 67.51, 67.13, 67.25, 65.98);
3. Sandra Elkasević (Cro) 221-6 (67.51)
(210-9, f, 221-6, f, f, f) (64.25, f, 67.51, f, f, f);
4. Marike Steinacker (Ger) 214-5 (65.37)
(178-4, 201-4, f, f, 214-5, f) (54.37, 61.37, f, f, 65.37, f);
5. Vanessa Kamga (Swe) 213-5 (65.05)
(213-5, f, f, 204-5, f, f) (65.05, f, f, 62.32, f, f);
6. Claudine Vita (Ger) 208-9 (63.62)
(208-9, f, 207-6, f, 200-11, 206-9) (63.62, f, 63.25, f, 61.25, 63.03);
7. Jorinde van Klinken (Neth) 207-10 (63.35)
(207-10, 201-9, f, f, f, 168-1) (63.35, 61.50, f, f, f, 51.23);
8. Daisy Osakue (Ita) 207-0 (63.11)
(207-0, f, f, f, 205-2, 197-10) (63.11, f, f, f, 62.53, 60.31);
9. Irina Rodrigues (Por) 200-9 (61.19)
(198-1, 200-9, f) (60.39, 61.19, f);
10. Kristin Pudenz (Ger) 198-1 (60.38)
(198-1, 197-1, f) (60.38, 60.07, f);
11. Alexandra Emilianov (Mol) 190-7 (58.08)
(190-7, f, 190-4) (58.08, f, 58.02);
12. Mélina Robert-Michon (Fra) 187-1 (57.03)
(185-9, f, 187-1) (56.63, f, 57.03).
| * = progression of the leading jump; ¶ = athlete’s best of the day | |||
| first 3 rounds | |||
| Emilianov | 58.08*¶ | f | 58.02 |
| Elkasević | 64.25* | f | 67.51¶ |
| Steinacker | 54.37 | 61.37 | f |
| Osakue | 63.11¶ | f | f |
| van Klinken | 63.35¶ | 61.50 | f |
| Robert-Michon | 56.63 | f | 57.03¶ |
| Allman | f | 68.74* | 68.06 |
| Vita | 63.62¶ | f | 63.25 |
| Rodrigues | 60.39 | 61.19¶ | f |
| Kamga | 65.05*¶ | f | f |
| Pudenz | 60.38¶ | 60.07 | f |
| Feng | 66.33* | 64.80 | 67.51¶ |
| rounds 4 & 5 | |||
| Steinacker | f | 65.37¶ | |
| Osakue | f | 62.53 | |
| van Klinken | f | f | |
| Vita | f | 61.25 | |
| Kamga | 62.32 | f | |
| Feng | 67.13 | 67.25 | |
| Elkasević | f | f | |
| Allman | 69.50*¶ | f | |
| last round | |||
| Osakue | 60.31 | ||
| van Klinken | 51.23 | ||
| Vita | 63.03 | ||
| Kamga | f | ||
| Steinacker | f | ||
| Elkasević | f | ||
| Feng | 65.98 | ||
| Allman | 69.21 | ||
QUALIFYING (August 02; auto-qualifier 210-0/64.00)
Qualifiers: Allman 228-3 (69.59), Elkasević 215-4 (65.63), Feng 214-7 (65.40), Kamga 213-8 (65.14) NR, van Klinken 212-7 (64.81), Emilianov 211-0 (64.33), Robert-Michon 209-2 (63.77), Pudenz 208-2 (63.45), Osakue 207-0 (63.11), Rodrigues 206-4 (62.90), Vita 205-8 (62.70), Steinacker 205-5 (62.63);
Non-qualifiers: Veronica Fraley (US) 205-2 (62.54) (farthest non-qualifier ever), Liliana Cá (Por) 204-10 (62.43), Taryn Gollshewsky (Aus) 204-7 (62.36) PR, Alida van Daalen (Neth) 204-0 (62.19), Izabela da Silva (Bra) 202-4 (61.68), Jayden Ulrich (US) 200-5 (61.08), Melany Matheus (Cub) 200-4 (61.07), Daria Zabawska (Pol) 199-8 (60.86), Chioma Onyekwere (Ngr) 199-5 (60.78), Ieva Gumbs (Lit) 198-0 (60.37), Marija Tolj (Cro) 196-5 (59.87), Lisa Brix Pedersen (Den) 196-2 (59.81), Silinda Morales (Cub) 195-1 (59.46), Andressa de Morais (Bra) 194-11 (59.43), Caisa-Marie Lindfors (Swe) 194-6 (59.29), Zhichao Jiang (Chn) 193-11 (59.10), Ashley Anumba (Ngr) 193-0 (58.83), Subenrat Insaeng (Tha) 190-6 (58.07), Samantha Hall (Jam) 180-3 (54.94), Pamela Amaechi (Ngr) 149-1 (45.45).