Athletics: Discus queen argues for change of focus

By DAVID LEGGAT at the Games

Grab a calendar and put a circle round this week, drop it in a drawer and pull it out again in 10 years.

If Beatrice Faumuina is right, this week could mark a considerable change in the old order of New Zealand athletics.

On the same day that Craig Barrett won the silver medal in the 50km walk, and two days after 17-year-old giant Valerie Adams picked up the shot-put silver, Faumuina completed back-to-back discus gold-medal triumphs at the Commonwealth Games.

Throw in a performance that was largely unnoticed - the sixth place by Hastings' Gabrielle Gorst on Sunday in the women's 20km road walk, after she covered the last 6km in real pain - and Faumuina senses that the emphasis on the track in New Zealand athletics is coming to an end.

The halcyon days of John Walker, Dick Quax and Rod Dixon - not to mention the Peter Snell, Murray Halberg and John Davies era of the 1960s - are long gone.

Faumuina meant no disrespect to New Zealand athletics' most illustrious figures. Rather, she was stating a strong argument, backed up by the figures, that the balance is shifting to field events and walks.

"We've done a lot of hard work, just as much as anybody else, and I hope they give us the recognition for what we've done."

If that happens, she believes New Zealand could shine at the highest level in those often-less-flattering disciplines 10 years down the line.

The 27-year-old's win on a bleak, misty night was just about as emphatic as it could be.

She heaved the discus 60.83m with her second throw, and, in between three no-throws, managed a 60.50m. Her closest challenger was India's Jaswant Singh Neelam with 58.49m, while Shelley Newman, of England, got the bronze, 36cm back.

The conditions did not help and Faumuina admitted she did not really feel the gold was in the bag until she walked into the cage for her final throw. At that point she could not be caught.

"That was a nice feeling. I'd had a really good preparation - three really hard competitions [in Sheffield, Zagreb and Wales] - and I thought, 'I'm the best I can be.'

"And the nice thing was walking into camp feeling fit, instead of walking into the medical clinic saying, 'Can you fix this up?"'

Faumuina made a beeline for her mother, Roini, in the stand after clinching the gold, clambering up for a long hug and the odd tear.

She even managed to persuade officials to let mum walk round the perimeter of the track. In these days of twitchy security officials, it was something of a coup.

Faumuina was reluctant to single out one of her Games medals for special affection.

"In 1994, the silver medal started my career. In 1998, it was the same scenario as here. I was ranked No 1, I started rough and came back and smashed the [Games] record. That was nice.

"This time everyone was saying, 'Bea, there's a lot of pressure'.

"But all it was, was about performing out there. It's nice to say I defended it and got it again."