A Meaningful Medal for Kassanavoid
Aug 01, 2022 | Track & Field, Sports Extra
By: D. Scott Fritchen
She took the podium to accept her bronze medal in a familiar venue, but under unfamiliar, exciting, and historic circumstances. Never could Janee' Kassanavoid have dreamed this exact dream, yet it was here, under her feet, as she celebrated her feat in the sunny, dry heat of Eugene, Oregon.
The 27-year-old Kassanavoid, the former All-American at Kansas State and current member of Team USA, launched the hammer 74.86 meters in the second round of the 2022 World Athletics Championships at historic Hayward Field, but that proved only a part of her historic performance.
With her mighty throw, Kassanavoid medaled in the first World Athletics Championships ever held on United State soil, became the first Native American woman to medal at the games, and did so at the University of Oregon, which is the traditional homeland of the Southern Kalapuya. An 1855 treaty forcibly removed and relocated the tribe to a reservation in western Oregon. Kassanavoid is a member of the Comanche tribe.
"It's very honoring and humbling all in one," Kassanavoid said. "It's super powerful to have this history-making performance. It's something I'll cherish forever and hopefully that just inspires and empowers the next generation of athletes and young women out there.
"I hope there are lots more medals to come and more records to break. I think this is just the start and it's something super meaningful to me and in everything I do for the hammer."
It's been an exciting past few months for Kassanavoid, a native of Lawson, Missouri. First, she set a personal best of 76.82 meters in Nairobi in early May. Then she improved her previous best with 77.17 at the U.S. Track and Field Throws Fest in Tucson, Arizona, before smashing her best again with a winning mark of 78.00 meters (255 feet, 10 inches) in round three.
Then she qualified for the World Championships in July after taking silver at the U.S. Outdoor Track and Field Championships in late June with a mark of 76.04 meters.
Her performance in the World Championships elevated her to sixth on the world all-time list for women's hammer throw and third on the U.S. all-time list behind reigning world champion DeAnna Price (80.31 meters) and Brooke Anderson (79.02).
"Being third best in the U.S. and sixth best in the world, that's just crazy," she said. "I would've never thought I'd be at this level today."
The youngest of the Kassanavoid family, Janee' watched her older siblings — Cheresta Jensen, Rondell Brown, Lisa Brown, Joseph Kassanavoid, Jasmine Samples and Jaaron Foster — compete in the shot put and discus in high school. They were all strong and athletic, and track and field events came naturally to the children, who used it to stay in shape to compete in other sports.
"Growing up, it was everything but track and field for me," she said. "It was my falling back sport to get me a scholarship and to continue at the college level."
Then she met K-State assistant track and field coach Greg Watson. He envisioned Janee' as a hammer thrower. When she came to K-State, she dropped all other events to focus solely on the hammer throw.
"It just kind of clicked ever since," she said.
Kassanavoid competed for K-State from 2015-18. Battling injuries, she earned the Big 12 title in 2017 and 2018, and she was a three-time All-American in 2016, 2017 and 2018. She earned First Team All-American honors in 2017. She set the school record with a toss of 68.21 meters (223 feet, 9 inches) at the 2018 Big 12 Championships.
"Where she is now is an accumulation of a lot of hard work over a number of years," K-State director of track and field Cliff Rovelto said. "Obviously, Greg does a great job with his athletes in general, but particularly in the hammer. She's been working with him for eight years. It isn't rocket science. If you have a good athlete working with a good coach and they spend time, then they've got a chance of being really good.
"If she can establish herself among the top five or six in the world on a consistent basis, that's really saying something. I think she's capable of doing that."
Kassanavoid credits much of her success to Watson.
"Greg has been amazing and he's who developed me through the years, and Coach Rovelto has always supported Greg in everything," she said. "That's what I respect the most. K-State track and field supports all events. I don't want to call it 'Throws University,' but I've been a part of that with my own Big 12 titles and team titles. Being a part of that and being a leader on and off the field is something super meaningful and that I've loved in being a part of K-State."
What's next on the horizon for Kassanavoid?
"I'm definitely not done," she said. "I'm definitely pursuing the Olympics in 2024. But it'd be even more meaningful to do it back on U.S. soil in 2028 in Los Angeles. As long as I'm healthy and continue to throw far, we'll see how far it goes."
So far, her latest achievement ranks best of them all on multiple levels.
"To be on native land was something super powerful to me and super meaningful and everything I represent in being native and an athlete," Kassanavoid said. "That was super awesome. From a young age, you can learn so many fundamental skills in sports and also in life. I think that's helped me as a young adult in transitioning and being a strong female and fighting stereotypes as a thrower, and loving myself and my body and everything that comes along with it. It's made me who I am and super comfortable and confident to be able to throw a hammer at such an elite level.
"It just has an overall impact of my strength and beauty and resilience and everything that I want to reflect on young women and what they want to do in life on and off the field. It's super impactful and means a lot to me. To be a role model or an influence for someone else means a great deal. I hope to continue to be a shining light, a role model, and a leader that way."
She took the podium to accept her bronze medal in a familiar venue, but under unfamiliar, exciting, and historic circumstances. Never could Janee' Kassanavoid have dreamed this exact dream, yet it was here, under her feet, as she celebrated her feat in the sunny, dry heat of Eugene, Oregon.
The 27-year-old Kassanavoid, the former All-American at Kansas State and current member of Team USA, launched the hammer 74.86 meters in the second round of the 2022 World Athletics Championships at historic Hayward Field, but that proved only a part of her historic performance.
With her mighty throw, Kassanavoid medaled in the first World Athletics Championships ever held on United State soil, became the first Native American woman to medal at the games, and did so at the University of Oregon, which is the traditional homeland of the Southern Kalapuya. An 1855 treaty forcibly removed and relocated the tribe to a reservation in western Oregon. Kassanavoid is a member of the Comanche tribe.
"It's very honoring and humbling all in one," Kassanavoid said. "It's super powerful to have this history-making performance. It's something I'll cherish forever and hopefully that just inspires and empowers the next generation of athletes and young women out there.
"I hope there are lots more medals to come and more records to break. I think this is just the start and it's something super meaningful to me and in everything I do for the hammer."
It's been an exciting past few months for Kassanavoid, a native of Lawson, Missouri. First, she set a personal best of 76.82 meters in Nairobi in early May. Then she improved her previous best with 77.17 at the U.S. Track and Field Throws Fest in Tucson, Arizona, before smashing her best again with a winning mark of 78.00 meters (255 feet, 10 inches) in round three.
Then she qualified for the World Championships in July after taking silver at the U.S. Outdoor Track and Field Championships in late June with a mark of 76.04 meters.
Her performance in the World Championships elevated her to sixth on the world all-time list for women's hammer throw and third on the U.S. all-time list behind reigning world champion DeAnna Price (80.31 meters) and Brooke Anderson (79.02).
"Being third best in the U.S. and sixth best in the world, that's just crazy," she said. "I would've never thought I'd be at this level today."
The youngest of the Kassanavoid family, Janee' watched her older siblings — Cheresta Jensen, Rondell Brown, Lisa Brown, Joseph Kassanavoid, Jasmine Samples and Jaaron Foster — compete in the shot put and discus in high school. They were all strong and athletic, and track and field events came naturally to the children, who used it to stay in shape to compete in other sports.
"Growing up, it was everything but track and field for me," she said. "It was my falling back sport to get me a scholarship and to continue at the college level."
Then she met K-State assistant track and field coach Greg Watson. He envisioned Janee' as a hammer thrower. When she came to K-State, she dropped all other events to focus solely on the hammer throw.
"It just kind of clicked ever since," she said.
Kassanavoid competed for K-State from 2015-18. Battling injuries, she earned the Big 12 title in 2017 and 2018, and she was a three-time All-American in 2016, 2017 and 2018. She earned First Team All-American honors in 2017. She set the school record with a toss of 68.21 meters (223 feet, 9 inches) at the 2018 Big 12 Championships.
"Where she is now is an accumulation of a lot of hard work over a number of years," K-State director of track and field Cliff Rovelto said. "Obviously, Greg does a great job with his athletes in general, but particularly in the hammer. She's been working with him for eight years. It isn't rocket science. If you have a good athlete working with a good coach and they spend time, then they've got a chance of being really good.
"If she can establish herself among the top five or six in the world on a consistent basis, that's really saying something. I think she's capable of doing that."
Kassanavoid credits much of her success to Watson.
"Greg has been amazing and he's who developed me through the years, and Coach Rovelto has always supported Greg in everything," she said. "That's what I respect the most. K-State track and field supports all events. I don't want to call it 'Throws University,' but I've been a part of that with my own Big 12 titles and team titles. Being a part of that and being a leader on and off the field is something super meaningful and that I've loved in being a part of K-State."
What's next on the horizon for Kassanavoid?
"I'm definitely not done," she said. "I'm definitely pursuing the Olympics in 2024. But it'd be even more meaningful to do it back on U.S. soil in 2028 in Los Angeles. As long as I'm healthy and continue to throw far, we'll see how far it goes."
So far, her latest achievement ranks best of them all on multiple levels.
"To be on native land was something super powerful to me and super meaningful and everything I represent in being native and an athlete," Kassanavoid said. "That was super awesome. From a young age, you can learn so many fundamental skills in sports and also in life. I think that's helped me as a young adult in transitioning and being a strong female and fighting stereotypes as a thrower, and loving myself and my body and everything that comes along with it. It's made me who I am and super comfortable and confident to be able to throw a hammer at such an elite level.
"It just has an overall impact of my strength and beauty and resilience and everything that I want to reflect on young women and what they want to do in life on and off the field. It's super impactful and means a lot to me. To be a role model or an influence for someone else means a great deal. I hope to continue to be a shining light, a role model, and a leader that way."
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