Harland on verge of major throwing break-through

Press, 19 October 1977, Page 22

Harland on verge of major throwing break-through

By

ROD DEW

The climb to the top in athletics can be a lengthy process. The powerful Canterbury hammer thrower, Bernie Harland (Technical), will readily testify to that: it was 12 years ago that he decided to specialise in hammer throwing and since that time he has been placed six times at national level without actually winning the title.

But this season, Harland appears ready to claim the crown which has escaped him so narrowly in the past. His great throw of 59.42 m on opening day, followed by another mighty effort of more than 58m a week later, are indications that at the age of 32 he is on the verge of a major break-through.

Never before has he shown such impressive early-season form. There is a reason for this, of course. He was one of the 13 Canterbury athletes named in the original list of trialists for the New Zealand Pacific Conference Games team, and he wants to reach an early peak. But Harland is now throwing better than he has ever done before, even at the height of a season.

He appears to have perfected the four-turn throw ■which he has been working on for the last three years. This is not easy to master, requiring great strength, balance, skill, and split-second timing. "Ft has taken me this long to master it but it has been worth the effort," he said.

Harland is aiming to break the 60m barrier for the first time in the New Zealand trials at Auckland on October 29 and 30. But he is hoping to do even better than this before he has finished this season. He hasn’t forgotten the magic of surpassing the 200 ft mark in the hammer. This has always been his target and the change to metrics has not altered this.

In metric measurement, 200 ft represents 61m in round figures. Harland’s winter preparation this year has been particularly solid. He has been throwing constantly at the Technical club’s

Ensors Road ground, often with the companionship and guidance of the former New Zealand champion, Dave Leech. But he has also been working hard with weights. In recent months he has been lifting greater weights than ever before. He has clean and jerked 145 kg and snatched 104 kg. He has also been doing repetitions with “fairly high” weights. Harland has increased his body-weight by about 5 kg to 10 kg, which he believes is his best throwing weight. “Any heavier and I would start to slow up. Speed in the circle is very important.”

It is difficult to envisage Harland missing a

place in the New Zealand team for the Pacific games, which will be held in Canberra on December 3 and 4. But this promises to be just a stepping stone to greater things. Once that is behind him, the big build-up for the New Zealand championships in Wellington will start. Murray Cheater (Auckland), the winner of the title in recent seasons and the current holder of the national record at 71.20 m, is at present overseas, leaving the way clear for the burly Christchurch thrower to

However, Harland’s main object this season is to pave the way for selection for the Commonwealth Games in Edmonton next year. And he is well aware that he will have to do rather more than just win the national championship to get away. Whether he will continue on into next winter in a serious bid for selection will, nevertheless, depend on how well he does in the New Zealand championship and how tough the selection standards are.

He still has memories of bettering the selection standard for the Christchurch Commonwealth

Games on several occasions, only to be passed over when the team was announced. At the time, Harland and a former national champion, Daryl Gilliland (Auckland), were competing for the third hammer position in the team behind Cheater and the then national champion, Warwick Nicholl. Gilliland put out some fine throws during the build-up and seemed to have the edge. But in the trials, Harland beat him. “It was a bit discouraging,” Harland recalled of his omission

claim his first national title.

“AU I did was keep Daryl Gilliland out of the team.” For the Edmonton Games, Cheater seems likely to be selected, even if he spends the entire New Zealand summer overseas. But if Harland can crack that 61m mark, it is very likely that he will go to Canada, too. Harland has already represented New Zealand twice. He competed in a New Zealand singlet for the first time at the New Zealand Games and earlier this year competed in the test against Australia at Auckland. In the test he improved on the performance he achieved in gaining second place at the national championships a short time before but concedes that “it could have been better.” In the last decade, Harland has been third in the New Zealand championship four times and run-ner-up twice. It is a worthy record, but one he plans to improve on in the years ahead. Because of the way they train, New Zealand throwers reach their peak in their 30s and he feels that there is room for more progress, yet. “I still get a lot of enjoyment out of it.” he said.

Harland is very pleased that his old adversary, Nicholl, might return to throwing this season, even if it is in a more social capacity. Nicholl, who has not competed seriously for some years, recently attended a practice with Harland. “He picked up the hammer and threw it 160 ft. It was if he had never been away,” Harland recalled. Once of the reasons for his good form this season, Harland considers, is because the throwers have not been banished to the out-fields at Queen Elizabeth Ii Park. “Throwing inside has boosted my morale. As soon as I knew we were going to be allowed to throw in the main arena it lifted everything. All the other throwers feel the same. We have to thank the park management for that."