Throws summit scheduled for Tahoe

U.S. track and field Olympians Andy Bloom, Suzy Powell and Kevin McMahon will be featured guests when the first Lake Tahoe Throw Summit is held this weekend in Tahoe City.

The two-day clinic for throwers -- shot put, discus, javelin, hammer and weight throws -- will be held Saturday and Sunday at North Tahoe High School.

Registration will be open from 8 to 9 a.m. on Saturday and the clinic will be held from 9 to 5. Sunday's session will be held from 8 a.m. until 3 p.m.The event has been coordinated by Bob McKay, who coaches at Moorepark Junior College in Southern California, North Tahoe High coach Skip Pachinski and Mike Louisiana of Carson City, a NCAA discus champ at BYU in 1971 who went to the 1976 U.S. Olympic Trials.

The concept of an event for throwers is patterned after the Pole Vault Summit, held each January in Reno and hosted by Carson City-based UCS Spirit, according to Louisiana. Participants and coaches are expected from California, Oregon, Idaho, Utah and Nevada, and a full agenda is planned even though outdoor facilities will be limited because of snow conditions at Tahoe.

"We'll have talks by athletes and coaches and we'll be able to go through drills and do some film work," Louisiana said. "This is our first year and we're hoping to kick this off and keep it going."

Bloom, who now resides in Vacaville, Calif., placed fourth in the shot put at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney and fourth at the 1999 World Championships. He was also the 1996 NCAA shot put and discus champion for Wake Forest.

Powell, who grew up in Modesto, Calif., and now lives in Los Angeles, threw the discus in the 1996 and 2000 Olympics. She was the U.S. Olympic Trials champion in 96.

McMahon, a San Jose resident, qualified for the 1996 and 2000 Olympics in the hammer throw and finished first at the U.S. outdoor championships this year.