Steven Tofanelli '15 Recruiting Profile

It was only in the past two years that I discovered my talent for hammer throwing. Now that I have discovered it, I feel like that I would never want to stop throwing hammer. For me, hammer throwing is not just about throwing and competing; it provides me with a drive to do my best in everything that I do.

Besides hammer throwing, my other passion is  learning the backgrounds and cultures of the people I meet. When I am around other people, whether they’re peers or elders,  my personality and communication style involves showing complete respect and understanding. I am known for being a model sportsman in my interactions with coaches, officials, and all athletes, not just teammates. It’s not uncommon for officials to come up to me after meets to comment on how impressed they are with my sportsmanship.

My goal is to go to a 4 year college or university. I would be the first one in my family to do that. My goal after college is to work in a profession that focuses on helping others.

While I am still early in my development of hammer throwing, I have progressed rapidly for several reasons. I have had year round training, excellent coaches (Mike Curry and David Popejoy 1996 Olympian), support from my family, and my Big Brother Mentor Brad Gould, who has been with me for the last 8 years. I started throwing hammer for the first time in May 2013 and my personal record (PR) at the end of that season was 147 feet. I then trained throughout winter focusing mainly on weight throw with a PR of 58 feet in March 2014.

My 2014 hammer season started in January with an opening throw of 173 feet. However, because hammer is not an high school event I did not have any meets until June when I improved my (PR)  to 189 feet at the Golden West Invitational, where I took third place. I finished my season in August with another third place at the Sons of Italy Track and Field Throwing Championships in Rhode Island with a throw of 193'2". I recently furthered my PR to 197'7" at a Golden State Throwers inter-squad competition officiated by a USATF official in October.

My goals for my senior year are 72 feet in the weight throw and over 220 feet in hammer. I am aiming to be ranked top 10 nationally in both the weight throw and hammer by the end of my senior year. My mentor Brad and I established a goal last year of breaking into the rankings of elite hammer throwers by the end of my Junior year and with enormous hard work I am now  ranked in the top 30 nationally. For my college years I seek a throwing program that has the structure and resources to help me attain a national ranking at the college level.

Academically, I am an (B/C) student. Although I have the challenge of being Hard of Hearing (not completely deaf with the use of hearing aids and lip-reading).  I have learned with extra hard work I can realize my full potential in and outside of the classroom.  My academic and career interests are in the areas of psychology, social work and health and human performance.