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His Best Shot
March/April 2007
by Cathy Shufro

Men’s track and field captain John Langhauser '07 made no secret of his plan to break the Yale shot put record. After his best throw landed just six inches short at a January meet against Columbia and Dartmouth, Langhauser told the Yale Daily News: “I will destroy the record.”

That record was Yale’s longest-standing for indoor track and field, set in 1950 when Jim Fuchs '50 “put” the shot 57' 7" (17.57 meters). Fuchs had already won the bronze for shot put at the 1948 Olympics and would win a second bronze in 1952. During his career, he set four world records. (The current indoor world record is 22.66 meters.)

Langhauser’s next chance came six days after he made his bold claim. Although he easily won first place among 42 competitors at Boston University’s Terrier Classic, his best throw of 17.06 meters fell short of the Yale record. It also fell short of his best at the Columbia-Dartmouth meet: 57' 1” (17.43 meters).

Despite the setback, Langhauser seemed to enjoy the effect of his vow. “It was the sound bite of the week,” he said at practice a few days later. Still, “I need to throw six inches farther than I’ve ever thrown. It’s easier said than done.”

Throwing a shot requires more than simply hurling a 16-pound metal ball. The spin technique that Langhauser uses requires precise choreography: when Langhauser steps into the shot put circle, he faces the opposite direction of the throw, the shot nestled against his neck. Then he spins to create torque, whirling one and a half turns before releasing the shot. To succeed requires grace, good timing, and explosive force.

Doing it right is counterintuitive, said Anna Mahon, the team’s “throws” coach and a 2004 Olympic hammer contestant. “You think you want to go as hard as you can the whole time, and that’s not how to do it. You have to be a student of the event. It’s all about technique.”

Langhauser said Mahon taught him how to prepare mentally. “You only have a fraction of a second to make the difference between a good throw and a horrible throw. You only get three throws in a competition. Before a meet, I’ll sit and relax and close my eyes and visualize myself throwing in the circle. I feel it and I see it in my head where I need to do certain things.”

Although Langhauser is 6' 1” and 255 pounds, he says that “for a shot-putter, that’s a dwarf.” He likes throwing in part because his prowess can be reduced to a number. “It’s very objective. You know where you stand.”

As she watched Langhauser prepare for the February 3 Giegengack Invitational, Mahon speculated that the pressure of the highly competitive meet might help Langhauser.

She was right. At his last meet ever at Yale, on his final throw, Langhauser fulfilled his mission. He threw the shot 17.88 meters, surpassing Fuchs by 31 centimeters, or 12 inches.

As he stepped out of the circle after his throw, the normally self-contained Langhauser seemed almost giddy. Someone called out: “You broke a 57-year-old record,” and Langhauser replied:  “It was time for that record to go.”

Jim Fuchs apparently agreed. That afternoon, the 79-year-old former record holder sent Langhauser an e-mail. “Congratulations,” Fuchs wrote. “Records are meant to be broken.”  

Sports Shorts

On January 28 at the Terrier Classic in Boston, sophomore sprinter Brandon Giles eclipsed a 14-year-old Yale record for the 200-meter dash. The old mark, 21.98 seconds, was set by Calvin Anderson '93 in 1992 and tied by Michael Borden '99 in 1999. Giles, who already owns the record for the fastest 200 in Yale’s Coxe Cage, ran the event in 21.83 seconds.

Among the teams active this winter, the standout so far is women’s hockey. The team, which is assured of a winning record for only the second time since 1985-86, has been continuing its return to respectability under head coach Hillary Witt. The Bulldogs are guaranteed a spot in the Eastern College Athletic Conference playoffs. They have also surpassed the single-season goals record of 87, set in 1984-85.

Defensive lineman Brandt Hollander '08 has been named the 130th captain of Yale’s football team. Hollander anchored a stingy defense that helped the Bulldogs win their 14th Ivy League championship last season. The 6' 3", 260-pound middle guard was selected for first-team All-Ivy and All-New England honors.

On her blog about the 2007 season, softball team captain Christina Guerland '07 writes that “no one ever forgets the month of February. “ The first game doesn’t take place until March 7 (against Quinnipiac, at the William O. Dewitt '63 Family Field), but to get ready, the athletes endured a month of three-day-a-week practices that began at 6 a.m. “It’s a bonding experience,” quips Guerland.

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