Kara Patterson owes her success as a javelin thrower to her freshman geometry teacher at Skyview High School. Ron Heidenreich, who was also the girls’ track coach at the Washington school, suggested Patterson try the javelin after quitting softball.
“I didn’t know what javelin was, but I was excited about having a ‘fun’ sport to participate in,” said the 26-year-old Seattle native. “I never expected it would become an absolute career. It’s thanks to Mr. Heidenreich that I even tried it in the first place.”
While competing for Skyview, Patterson became a four-year varsity letter winner in swimming, basketball and track and field. The three-time javelin state champion earned a scholarship to Purdue University in Indiana.
“Purdue was an awesome experience for me,” said the 2009 nutrition, fitness and health graduate. “I knew right after my official visit that I would end up there, and that was because of Coach Zuyderwyk and the teammates I met.”
Patterson says that the friendships she achieved through the Purdue athletic department created a withstanding and unbelievably supportive network of teammates, friends and coaches. Patterson claims that the network allowed her to improve and succeed while at the university.
“There was a perfect balance of calm encouragement and a little bit of pressure that helped me get better throughout my collegiate career,” said the San Diego Humane Society volunteer.
While at the 2008 Big Ten conference meet, Patterson set the Purdue, Big Ten Championships and American Collegiate record with a mark of 61.56 meters. The throw surpassed the “A” standard for the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Later that summer at the 2008 Olympic Trials, Patterson won with a distance of 58.44 meters.
Although she didn’t make it past the qualifying round at the Olympics, Patterson became Purdue’s first female track and field Olympian.
“I’m so happy to have done that and been able to return to school the following semester. The Boilermaker community’s support continues to be overwhelming!”
After a disappointing year of throwing after the 2008 Olympics ordeal, Patterson broke Kim Kreiner’s 2007 American record with a distance of 66.67 meters on June 25, 2010.
“It feels good [to be an American record holder]! Honestly though, I don’t think of the American Record as the American Record,” said Patterson. “To me, it’s just my PR, and I’ve been waiting for two years to break it! I want that really badly, but know that I have to relax to get it.”
Patterson will get the opportunity to do that and more. She will be competing for the United States at the 2012 London Games in August, attempting to break her personal record and redeeming herself from the Beijing Games.
“I’m very focused on the few practices I have left before I head to London,” said Patterson. “I have really specific things I need to work on, and I like that; I think it’s good for me to have something exact that I need to fix – I like having a plan.”
“I didn’t have true Olympic dreams until a few years before Beijing, so to be heading to my second Olympics is just unbelievable,” said Patterson, who will be traveling to London with her family, friends, coach’s family and boyfriend Russ Winger's family, who is a discus thrower and shot-putter.
“I started out as totally clueless and just wanting to have fun, and I have tried to learn something every day for eleven years,” said Patterson. “I think that’s the key though: it started out as something new and intriguing, and it has remained that way for me. I’m still enjoying every minute of it.”
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