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  • Huntsville sophomore RaKira Turner used her speed and strength to win two gold medals at the Class 4A Region III meet at Bowers Stadium last week. She won the girls discus and shot put events with throws of 139 feet, 6 inches in the discus and 39 feet, 11 inches in the shot. On Friday, Turner will test her skills against the top throwers in Texas at the UIL Track and Field State Championships in Austin. Tom Waddill/The Huntsville Item

    Region III champ headed to Austin

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May 12, 2010

Going for gold

Huntsville sophomore continues quest for medals at state track meet

By Tom Waddill Sports Editor

HUNTSVILLE — It wasn’t that long ago. RaKira Turner stood in the shot put ring and with all of her might, flat-footed she heaved the heavy ball forward.

Her first throws from the discus ring were even more memorable. With no idea about how to hold the strangely shaped disc, Turner did her best but the results were far from pretty.

The second the discus left Turner’s little hand it started flapping like a flock of hungry geese headed south for winter.

“When I first started throwing the discus, I thought it was so hard,” Turner said before a light track practice Wednesday. “I started crying one time and my mom made me keep throwing. I couldn’t even hold the discus right, and that made me so frustrated. It just wouldn’t go as far as I wanted it to.”

Turner’s not having those problems anymore. She worked at it, and worked at it some more until she learned how to throw both the shot put and discus. She found teachers and coaches and listened to everything they told her to do.

Today, Turner is one of the top high school throwers in Texas, but she continues to push herself because she doesn’t want to be one of the best.

Turner wants to be the best.

“This weekend I want a victory and I want to throw my personal bests,” Turner said simply. “Those are my goals.”

The Class 4A Region III champion in both the shot and discus, Turner has earned a spot on the state’s biggest stage, the UIL Track and Field State Championships. She’ll be in Austin on Friday competing against the best throwers from all across Texas in both events.

Turner brings the second-best discus throw (139 feet, 6 inches) and the sixth-best shot put toss (39-11) into the state meet.

She’s got her sights set on two more gold medals. To accomplish that, Turner knows she’s going to have to tangle with Chamaya Turner, a freshman from New Braunfels Canyon who has the best qualifying marks in both the shot and discus.

“Chamaya’s a freshman, and to be honest I just don’t want a freshman to beat me,” said the sophomore from Huntsville.

RaKira’s coaches believe she can grab two gold medals at the state meet. When Turner has her mind set on something, her coaches say watch out. She usually finds a way to get it done. 

 “The best thing she has over everybody else is her competitive nature,” Huntsville discus coach David Cooper said. “She rises to the occasion and competes.”

Shot put coach Joseph Granville adds, “Kira has the mental edge in most competitions. She doesn’t choke when the big moment comes. Some athletes let bad throws bother them, but Kira doesn’t let anything bother her. You never have to worry about Kira being mentally ready.”

Through hard work in the rings, hours in the weight room and even some time on the dreaded track, Turner also has developed into a fundamentally sound thrower who is getting stronger and faster all of the time.

“Technique-wise, Kira is one of the best girls I’ve ever seen,” Granville explained. “She has incredible athletic ability. Some girls are big and strong, but I like when athletes throw the shot.”

“The reason she’s gotten so much better this year is she’s gotten a lot stronger,” Granville added. “Kira has worked hard in the weight room. She had all of the other stuff last year. Her technique got to the point where it was as good as I’ve ever seen. But being a freshman, she just wasn’t as strong as some of the other girls were.

“Kira can get 100 times stronger, too. And with that added strength, she’ll get faster and become even more explosive. That shot will start feeling light to her.”

Cooper marvels at the progress Huntsville’s young phenom has made in the past year.

“Kira threw 119 at regionals last year. Now she’s throwing 20 feet farther,” Cooper said. “She threw 141-2 in the discus at district and 40-11 in the shot put at Dayton. Those are her personal-best throws.

“She has a goal and her goal is to go to the University of Tennessee,” Cooper added. “She set that goal as a young girl, and that’s where the weight room came in. She understands what she has to do to reach her goal.”

Turner also understands the importance of school work. She can be the best thrower in the country in a couple of years, but if she doesn’t take care of her grades those doors in Tennessee and every other university will remain shut.

“Kira makes straight A’s,” Cooper said Tuesday. “She’s up there right now in tutorials taking care of her business.”

At noon Friday, she’ll be taking care of business in the discus ring, competing with the top seven throwers in the state. She’ll be on the other end of Mike Myers Stadium at 6 p.m. throwing the shot put and shooting for a spot on the medal stand.

“I have the experience of the Texas Relays, and I think I’m feeling a lot better than I did then,” said Turner, who competed inside Mike Myers Stadium last month. “I was nervous at the Texas Relays. I just didn’t know what to expect. That was really nerve-racking for me.”

“I think I can handle it this time.”

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