Walsh delivers big time under pressure to turn tables on Crouser
As cool as the other side of the pillow, Tom Walsh stared down defeat and suffocating pressure to strike a telling blow in his compelling shot put rivalry with Olympic champion Ryan Crouser.
You certainly couldn’t fault the burly Cantabrian’s temperament after the Kiwi world champion was left staring down the barrel of a third straight defeat to Crouser, with just one bullet left in his chamber at the Oslo Diamond League meet in Oslo yesterday.
But the 26-year-old Christchurchbased pride of Timaru saved his best till last, blasting out a final throw of 22.29 metres to snatch a dramatic 8cm victory over the giant American, and secure his first winning points for the Diamond League season.
This was Walsh back to the form that has seen him secure both the world indoors and outdoors titles over the last year. This was Walsh refusing to blink when the spotlight was at its most intense.
The Kiwi had led the competition from his very first throw, a highly respectable 21.91m that set an immediate tone for the world-class field assembled in the Norwegian capital.
But then, after an unholy pause mid-competition for the meet’s opening ceremony, Crouser responded with a fifth-round throw of 22.21m to seize the lead in dramatic fashion.
That saw Walsh come out in the final round with just one shot at snapping a two-event losing streak at Crouser’s hands, and respond beautifully with his fourth 22m-plus winning toss of the year. The man was back to his best, with another meet record in his pocket to boot.
‘‘I knew I had a bigger throw in me and doing it in the last round was so pleasing,’’ Walsh told Stuff from the track. ‘‘I just needed to get everything in a little bit more of a straighter line. I was moving really well and just had to line things up.
‘‘On the last throw, I was just so and free and straight through it. I was very happy to be able to do that because the last few weeks I’d just been missing that big one. It was good to be able to nail one.
‘‘It was a really consistent series, if a little frustrating because I hadn’t got a hold of one until the last round. That was just such a good feeling.’’
The victory was notable on a number of fronts for Walsh. It gets him back on the winning track after a rare misfire last time out, at the Diamond League meet in Eugene where he was a disappointing fourth. He’d also been beaten by Crouser prior to that at the Drake Relays meet in Des Moines.
Walsh and his rivals now head to Poland for a competition today before heading to Ostrava in the Czech Republic for the Golden Spike meet on June 13.