It was right before the high school state track meet last season that Oxford’s own throwing machine, Connor Bandel, decided he wanted to take his discus and shot put throwing skills to the USATF (USA Track and Field) Jr. Olympics, where he ended up placing second in both events July 30-31.
‘It was an adventure to get there,? Bandel said. ‘There (were) two qualifying meets to get there, a district track meet and then a regional track meet.?
Bandel ended up winning both events at the district level, then placing first in shot put and second in disc at regionals.
When he arrived at the national competition, it was unfamiliar to him.
‘I’d never been to actual meet like that,? he said. ‘I went to a showcase in the winter where there were a lot of people from international parts, but it wasn’t quite the same with the amount of actual people at the (Jr. Olympics).?
When asked how he felt placing second in both events, Bandel said he was happy with how he did in the disc.
‘I could have thrown better, but there just was a few technical things that were a little bit off,? he noted.
He threw for 187 feet and 2 inches. He described his shot put as both ‘rewarding and frustrating.? It was rewarding because his first throw, 62 feet and 3 inches, was a new personal record for himself, but it was frustrating because he was leading the entire competition until his last throw where he threw 62 feet and ? inches.
‘The guy who got first place threw 2? inches further than me and ended up beating me by (that amount),? Bandel said. ‘That was frustrating to me but I was still happy that I did so much further than my previous best.?
He was thankful to his throwing coach for Oxford George Schraut.
‘He’s always tried to be a little harder on me than some coaches would be, but I think that’s just kind of helped me (along) the way,? he said.
He also gave thanks to the coaches at Walled Lake Northern and Walled Lake who have also been instrumental in helping him improve his skill set.
Bandel said he got his start in track and field in seventh grade, when his teacher forced him to join the team stating that he ‘had too much energy in class.?
‘I didn’t really like running much and I didn’t really like jumping so one day I just picked up a (shot put) ball and started doing it,? he noted. ‘I wasn’t even the best on my team when I started, I was the second best, but then I started getting better.?
In fact Bandel took first place in the county during his eighth-grade year.
As far as his future plans, he is hoping to break the state records in shot put by throwing 70 feet and then throw 215 feet for the discus. Then in the summer he wants to try and go to the ‘New Balance Nationals,? which would be a step up from what he competed in this year. Then, hopefully he will qualify for the World Junior Olympics.
As far as college goes, he has them narrowed down to the top five or six.
He also wants to win some NCAA (National Collegiate Athletic Association.) titles as well.
‘I want to win some NCAA (National Collegiate Athletic Association) titles,? Bandel said. ‘After that if I can (still) throw some far distances, 2020 is kind of what I am aiming for the Olympics.?