Delsea graduate Josh Awotunde his first U.S. national team and will compete in the Indoor World Championships after placing 2nd at USATF Nationals Sunday with a monster PR.
On his second throw at the Podium in Spokane, Awotunde threw the 16-pound shot 71-4, good for second behind world record holder and two-time Olympic gold medalist Ryan Crouser, who won the event with a world-leading 73-10 ¼.
The top two finishers in each event at U.S. Nationals this weekend form the U.S. team that will travel to World Indoors March 18-20 at Štark Arena in Belgrade, Serbia.
Awotunde’s previous PR was 70-7 ½ from earlier this month in Louisville. He moved up from No. 20 to No. 13 in U.S. history and threw half a foot of his outdoor PR of 72-2 set in Italy in September, No. 15 in U.S. history.
His 71-4 is No. 4 in the world this year, behind Crouser on Sunday and Filip Mihaljević of Croatia [71-7 ¾ ] and Konra Bukowiecki of Poland [71-7 ½] both from a meet in Toruń, Poland, last weekend.
His throw is also No. 74 in world history.
Awotunde finished his series with a 68-4 ¼ and another 70-foot throw, a 70-2 ¼ on his fourth attempt. He fouled on his last two throws.
He’s now surpassed 70 feet four times in his last two meets after taking a PR of 69-11 ¾ into February, a four-year-old PR from the 2018 SEC Championships at College Station, Texas, while he was competing for South Carolina.
Awotunde finished more than two feet ahead of 3rd-place Roger Steen, a former NCAA Division 3 champion at Wisconsin Eau Claire.
From the Backstretch by Reuben Frank 