Reigning Olympic Champion Excited For Paris Games After Series Of Long Throws Shows She's Ready To Contend For Second Gold; Collegians Jayden Ulrich, Veronica Fraley Finish Second And Third To Make Team

By David Woods for DyeStat

Tim Healy photo

EUGENE – Valarie Allman has discovered balance. She had that, right?

Balance in the ring has allowed her to be the top thrower in the world and, according to World Athletics, the 11th-ranked woman in the entire sport.

For her, though, balance means a “great relationship” with her coach and boyfriend, Zeb Sion. Seeing friends. Having a dog. Playing cards and board games.

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“Kind of like normal, human stuff,” Allman said. “It just feels really nice.”

As she heads to the Paris Olympics, she has savoir faire. And some long, long, long discus throws.

Allman was overwhelmingly dominant Thursday on night 5 of the U.S. Olympic Team Trials.

Her shortest throw, 220-5 (67.19), would have won by 15 feet. She had five exceeding 220 feet, topped by 232-0 (70.73m) in the last round.

Her distance of 232-7 (70.89m) in qualifying Monday was her best since April 2022.

Collegians claimed the other Olympic spots, reversing their finish from the NCAA Division 1 Championships at Hayward Field. Louisville’s Jayden Ulrich was second at 205-5 (62.63m) and Veronica Fraley of Vanderbilt third at 205-2 (62.54m).

Fraley already has the Olympic standard of 211-7 (64.50). Ulrich is 29th in world rankings, with 32 accepted into the Olympics.

Ulrich transferred to Louisville from Indiana University, where she was a Big Ten champion. She followed her coach, Cory Martin, who was not retained on the IU staff and subsequently hired by Louisville coach Joe Franklin.

Another collegian, Erika Beistle of Division 2 Grand Valley State, was fourth at 205-1 (62.50m), the No. 2 all-dates throw in division history.

The outcome resembled the trials in 2016, when two collegians – Shelbi Vaughn of Texas A&M and Kelsey Card of Wisconsin – finished second and third.

The event changed significantly when Laulauga Tausauga-Collins, who upset Allman to win at the 2023 World Championships, fouled three times in qualifying.

On the world list, Allman remains behind the 239-9 (73.09m) by Cuba’s Yaime Perez in windy conditions at Ramona, Okla., in April.

Micaela Hazlewood, second at the 2021 Trials, was seventh at 193-4 (58.93m).

“People think you have to be all-in all the time, and an unbalanced life is how you succeed,” Allman said. “And that is true. You do need that.”

Yet in doing so, she said, she lost some of the joy of her sport.

“I feel like it’s back,” she said. “Whatever the result is, I’m really grateful for how my life has changed to have more balance and consistency outside of track.”

She said she is aiming to recapture the fearlessness she lacked at the past two World Championships, in which she was overtaken and settled for silver and bronze medals. Summoning that trait in the last round, and exceeding 70 meters again, makes her optimistic about Paris.

She will try to equal the back-to-back discus golds by Croatia's Sandra Perkovic in 2012 and 2016.

“I think in a lot of ways this feels like the first Olympics I’m going to,” Allman said. “Which I can’t wait. The biggest part was my family not being there. The Allman crew is going to be there in strong force.

“Nothing sets my heart on fire like knowing that my 18-month-old nephew is going to be cheering there. So I can’t wait for that full experience.”

Elsewhere in field events, Tara Davis-Woodhall needed one attempt to post the longest distance of long jump qualifying, 22-9 (6.93m). Jasmine Moore Jumped 22-8.50 (6.92m) and world indoor silver medalist Monae Nichols 22-5.75 (6.85m).

Sophia Beckmon, an Illinois freshman from Oregon City, Ore., was 16th at 20-6.25 (6.25m) and eliminated. She tied the American under-20 record of 22-6.25 (6.86m) on May 4 at Champaign, Ill., and won the U20 national title June 13 at Eugene.

Among those qualifying for the men’s high jump final were 2023 world silver medalist JuVaughn Harrison and high schooler Scottie Vines of De Beque, Colo.

Contact David Woods at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter: @DavidWoods007.