When Joe Eppelle was preparing for the Pan Am Juniors in Windsor, Ontario he wanted to set a personal best at the event and he achieved his goal.
In fact, he smashed his previous best effort in the hammer throw by more than three metres.
He felt he couldn't win because he's been recovering from an injury and the field he faced at the international event was a tough one.
According to the Pan Am Games website, Eppelle, 18, threw the hammer a distance of 58.10 metres (196.6 feet).
His goal was to throw 56 metres at the games and his personal best before the Windsor event was 54.98 metres.
"That was all I was hoping for so that made the trip all worth it," Eppelle said of achieving his goal. "There was one throw I had later on in the competition that was more than 60 metres but my foot just went over the line so it didn't count."
He said if his best throw was allowed he would have finished in the top five and possibly as high as second place.
Eppelle's effort was good for a seventh place finish at the games. The event winner tossed the six-kilogram hammer a staggering 68.15 metres.
"It was an awesome trip." Eppelle said. "There were so many different cultures."
He can't wait now for his next chance at international competition. Eppelle has his sights on attending the Junior Worlds next summer in Beijing, China. Next year will mark his final year as a junior athlete so it will be his last chance to compete at the Junior Worlds.
"He knows now that he can handle international meets," said Eppelle's mother, Caroline.
She said fans treated her son like a star.
"He was signing autographs all day all the time," she said.
This was Eppelle's first track and field meet as a representative of his [email protected]
