Nelson, Godina qualify for shot put final

ANCIENT OLYMPIA, Greece - Adam Nelson (Athens, Ga.) and John Godina (Mesa, Ariz.) automatically advanced to Wednesday afternoon's men's shot put final in qualifying rounds this morning at Olympia.

The Olympics returned to their original site as men's and women's throwers entered the competition field through ancient ruins for women's qualifying at 8:30 a.m. and men's at 10 a.m.

Lush, towering Cyprus trees and an early-morning crowd of 15,000 fans greeted them on a site that has stood since 776 B.C. Adding to the history was American Kristin Heaston (Palo Alto, Calif.), who became the first woman ever to compete on the site when she entered the ring for the first throw of the competition.

A cool, dewy morning quickly gave way to intense sun and hot, windless conditions. Nelson and Godina thrived in the atmosphere as both men surpassed the automatic qualifying mark of 20.40m/66-11.25 on their second throws. The defending Olympic silver medalist and two-time Olympic Trials champion, Nelson fouled on his first throw before posting the best mark of qualifying, 21.15m/69-4.75, on his second toss.

"This is better than anything I could have dreamed of," said Nelson of the inspiration he drew from the stunning setting at Olympia. "This facility is absolutely world class. It has been for thousands of years, so why would it change now?"

Godina, the 1996 Olympic silver medalist, 2000 Olympic bronze medalist and three-time world champion, threw 19.73m/64-8.75 on his opening attempt, then went 20.53m/67-5.25 on his second. The mark was #5 in qualifying, behind Nelson, Joachim Olsen of Denmark (20.78m/68-2.25), Ralf Bartels of Germany (20.65m/67-9) and Yuriy Bilonog of Ukraine (20.61m/67-7.5). "I'm just going to go out there, do everything I can tonight, and hope it's good enough," Godina said of the final. "I'm going to go out there and do what I've been doing in practice."

Olympic Trials runner-up Reese Hoffa (Athens, Ga.) was 22nd in qualifying and did not advance. Hoffa opened with 18.88m/61-11.5, then hit the tape marking the automatic qualifying distance on his second throw. He was charged with a foot foul in the ring, however, and the throw was not measured. His third throw of 19.40m/63-7.75 was not enough to put him in the top 12 to make the final. Team USA filed a protest because Hoffa received only one of his allowed two warm-up throws, but the protest was denied.

Although Team USA's women's throwers did not fare as well as the men, their place in history was secured. Kristin Heaston was the first woman to throw in the qualifying round, making her the first woman ever to compete at Olympia. After a first throw of 16.41m/53-10.75, she fouled in her second attempt before posting her best throw of 17.17m/56-4, well short of the automatic qualifying mark of 18.50m/60-8.5 and also shy of her personal best (18.56m/60-10.75). Although disappointed with her performance, Heaston put her day in perspective. "It's just exciting to be here and be part of it," the 2003 U.S. indoor and outdoor champion said. "Who knows when there will be another woman competing here, or another competition? It's just awesome. Now that I'm done, I get to take it in a bit."

Olympic Trials champion Laura Gerraughty (Chapel Hill, N.C.) likewise had a tough day in the ring, opening with 15.94m/52-3.75, fouling on her second attempt, and throwing 16.47m/54-0.5 on her final throw more than eight feet shy of her career best of 19.15m/62-10 from the 2004 indoor season. "I think I let my nerves get the best of me," said the 21-year-old NCAA indoor and outdoor champion. "A lot of things went through my mind since I had to wait so long between throws. This will light a fire under me and be my inspiration for the upcoming [next] season."

Nadezhda Ostapchuk of Belarus had the best mark in qualifying with 19.69m/64-7.25, followed by Irina Korzhanenko of Russia (19.43m/63-9).

Team USA athlete quotes:

ADAM NELSON: "The Greeks have exceeded all my expectations. This is better than anything I could have dreamed of. This facility is absolutely world class. It has been for thousands of years, so why would it change now?" On walking through the tunnel from the archeological site into the stadium: "Talk about an Olympic experience, there's something special about this place. It brings out a certain emotion in me as an Olympic athlete. It is something that is pretty powerful. You feed on it and let it take you to the next level. "They made some changes to the ring from yesterday, which allowed us to have better traction. The biggest issue was waking up and getting going. The qualifying round is always the most difficult. It think we'll see some great throws tonight. This was the first chance for shot putters to be the main event, and the focus of everyone's attention. In the same breath, this place can also be distracting with all the hype surrounding it."

JOHN GODINA: "It was awesome to walk into this stadium this morning. Thousands of people were there all wanting you to throw far. I don't think anybody wishes anybody here anything bad. We looked around a little bit the past few days and I recognized a couple of things from my school days. This environment is really friendly. It's hot and dry, you cannot ask for more than that. I was trying to do my job this morning. And it is a really drawn out process for the qualifying. I feel fit and strong and I think this evening it's going to be a lot more emotional." I was skeptical if they were going to get as many people here that they thought they would. That just added to the atmosphere. I'm just going to go out there, do everything I can tonight, and hope it's good enough. I'm going to go out there and do what I've been doing in practice. I'll just get ready for tonight. Get some food, relax, take a nap.

REESE HOFFA: No comment.

KRISTIN HEASTON On competing at Olympia: "It was awesome. I just wish I had done better. There are very few times I do better in warm-ups than in the final, so I'm a little disappointed in that." What did you think about being the first woman Olympian to compete here?: "Now that it's over, I'll just enjoy it. I wasn't nervous at all. I thought I was ready to go. I just didn't put it together. ... I was so ready for a big throw. I just rushed it a little bit. Maybe I was more ready physically than I was mentally." On whether she noticed the atmosphere: "It was a long wait between throws. You usually stay pretty focused, but here, you start taking it in." On being the only event at Olympia: "Men's and women's shot putters never feel anything like this. We're usually kind of in the background, but this is totally different." "It's just exciting to be here and be part of it. Who knows where there will be another woman competing here, or another competition? It's just awesome. Now that I'm done, I get to take it in a bit." On her significance in history: "It's a bit overwhelming. I hadn't really thought about that. Once you get here, it's all about just performing well. I probably should have thought more about what I was doing in the ring instead of what I was doing in history. I didn't throw well, but how can this be negative?"

LAURA GERRAUGHTY: "I was up since 10 til 4 this morning, so I needed a couple more cups of coffee. I could never get my body going. The hyperness made it more difficult than the actual setting. I think I let my nerves get the best of me. A lot of things went through my mind since I had to wait so long between throws. This will light a fire under me and be my inspiration for the upcoming [next] season." On the historical significance of Olympia and the competition here: "I took a Greek history class at North Carolina, so it was interesting to walk through the ruins and see how it was from a different perspective, thousands of years ago. It was kind of a ghostly feeling. The crowd was amazing. It was cool to be in the spotlight. It was definitely an honor to compete for my country and to be a part of history."