Throwback Thursday is a DyeStat feature that allows us to remember and celebrate some of the great meets and performances that have been a part of our DyeStat coverage since John Dye founded the site. Thanks to many stories, photos and videos that have been preserved in our archives, we are able to relive and share with you some of the very best of DyeStat.com.
Whiting makes history at '05 PIAA Champs
By Steve Underwood
DYESTAT 2005 PA STATE MEET COVERAGE | INDOOR FEATURE BY DON RICH | RYAN WHITING TFX PROFILE | DON RICH'S FULL 2005 PA STATE MEET COVERAGE
Eight years have passed since the 2005 PIAA Pennsylvania AAA state meet. And for thrower Ryan Whiting, that time frame encompasses an extremely successful collegiate stint at Arizona State – six NCAA titles – and the first three years of a pro career with Nike that has included finals appearances for Team USA at the 2011 IAAF World Champs and the 2012 London Olympics. In fact, with his PR 73-1.25 at the Doha, Qatar IAAF Diamond League earlier in May, Whiting is currently the world leader in the shot put. Last weekend, he scored another big victory in the rain at the adidas Grand Prix, the IAAF Diamond League event in New York.
But he won’t forget May 27-28, 2005 on the throwing rings at Shippensburg State, during the midst of an outstanding, whirlwind senior year at Central Dauphin High School in Harrisburg. Whiting wanted three things at the AAA state meet: PRs in both the shot put and the discus, and a second straight team state title for his Rams.
In the shot, that would mean nothing less than 70 feet. DyeStat’s coverage came from Don Rich of PennTrackXC (pa.milesplit.com), who while covering the meet for his site shared much of his coverage with DyeStat.com.
“The week before, in the district meet, I had come within half an inch of 70 in the same ring,” Whiting recalled this 
week. So he was amped to break the magic barrier, and it would come on his second throw of the prelims. “I remember on the 70-footer, I walked out to the end of the sector to check where it landed. I knew it would be close.
“There was an official there named Mr. Black, and I said, ‘Mr. Black, you better give it to me this week!’” Of course, the statement wasn’t a threat, just the hopes of someone who had come so close before. This time he got it, a still-standing state record 70 on the nose. At the time, he was #12 in US prep history.
That was the second day of the meet. The first day, Whiting had also set a personal best in the discus, hitting a US-leading 201-9. Strong in his memory, though, is an unforgettable foul. “I had one that I think went between 216-217 feet. To this day, I still don’t think it was a foul.”
The 20 points Whiting scored were instrumental in Central Dauphin’s 40.5 point total, which was 8.5 points clear of Cumberland Valley for the AAA title defense. “Winning that was a huge deal for us,” he says. “I felt like I was our anchor going into state. We had a close knit group of guys and we all wanted it.”
Whiting had started throwing in eighth grade. He had previously been a soccer player (keeper) and would eventually play football, too. He had some success early on the gridiron, but he would leave the sport after ninth grade. He recalls the Rams’ football coach, George Chaump, declared he would never get far in track and field. “When I see him now, I make sure and rub that in his face a little bit,” says Whiting with a laugh.
As for Central Dauphin track, he was coached by Tom Eck and Mike Sage, but huge development came from working with Glenn Thompson, a throws coach also based in Harrisburg. “Coach Thompson taught me the spin with both the shot and discus.”
Thompson remembers first encountering Whiting after he been connected with him through the Shippensburg coach and throwers camp director, Kurt Dunkel. “Ryan was looking for some private coaching. I remember he was a big, huge kid, but that he was clearly still maturing and I could tell he had a lot of upside.
“The biggest thing was that Ryan had a lot of athletic gifts he could rely on to start with,” Thompson continues. “I’m not talking about strength so much, but rather that he was a tremendous athlete, more explosive and coordinated than most throwers I worked with. To this day, I think that athleticism helps separate him.”
As for the rest of his senior campaign, Whiting would tell Don Rich that neither winning throw at AAA state was 
perfect and that he could still improve. Improvement, however, would be hard to come by – even though his post-season was pretty successful. He won both throws at Golden West, but at Nike Outdoor Nationals (then the name of the National Scholastic Athletic Foundation’s outdoor championships) he was second in both to Steve Marcelle (shot) and Tommy Kellen (discus).
Then at USATF Juniors, Whiting won the shot and was second in the discus, earning berths to the Pan American Junior Championships. There he claimed both events and, in the discus, threw a mighty 201-5 with the heavier Junior implement – just four inches off his PR with the prep discus. For both Junior implements, he is still #3 all-time among preps.
“It was kind of disappointing, though, because I had thrown 70 feet (in practice) with that 6k shot,” he says now. “Overall, it was a really busy year (he also won the shot at Arcadia). I threw in 31 meets and did a lot of traveling.”
So strong, however, was Whiting’s overall senior season that he won the Gatorade National Boys Track and Field Athlete of the Year. He had also thrown 68-11.5 with the shot indoors, good for #4 all-time at that point and still #9 on the national list.
Many prep stars struggle going to the next level, but Whiting’s success was just beginning. His went to Arizona State and began throwing under renowned coach David Dumble. His first NCAA title came indoors in 2008, where he smashed the collegiate record with 71-3.5. “Going into that season, I’d had a really good fall of training,” he says. “I felt like I was finally strong enough to throw the 16-pound shot consistently well. I PR’d every meet.”
However, what followed was one of the few down periods in Whiting’s career. “I wasn’t completely mentally ready. I was like, ‘What just happened?’” he says. “Not long after that, I destroyed my ankle. I was out for two months ... by the time I came to the 2008 Olympic Trials, I was only about 80 percent.”
The Sun Devil bounced back strong, though. In 2009, he repeated in the NCAA indoor shot, then won his first outdoor shot title, while also taking second in the discus. 2010 was even better as he three-peated indoors and claimed the shot/discus double outdoors. His winning shot of 72-0.75 outdoors was just off John Godina’s 72-2.25 national collegiate record.
Whiting’s subsequent pro career with Nike has seen him break into what had been called the USA’s “big three” of Reese Hoffa, Christian Cantwell, and Adam Nelson. His indoor throwing has continued to be stellar, with a 2011 win and 2012 runner-up at USATFs, and a stupendous IAAF World Indoor victory in 2012 with a world leading 72-2.25. Outdoors, he made Team USA for both the 2011 IAAF Worlds in Daegu (7th) and the 2012 London Olympics (9th).
And, in 2013, Whiting has continued to show he’s still on his way up, with his performances at Doha and NYC. He 
continues to live and train in State College, where he moved in 2010. He volunteer coaches and trains with the Nitanny Lions and says he is mostly self-coached.
“I think the biggest thing I’ve learned is that staying healthy is more important than pushing yourself too hard to try and get that extra one or two percent improvement,” he says. “It’s knowing your limits and knowing how to train to stay healthy. Overtraining is a real issue.”
Also, when Whiting thinks of what he learned in high school from Coach Thompson, it’s more how he prepared him for the future than even what he did with him as a prep. “Coach really helped me during the recruiting process,” he says. “He instilled in me that I had to be ready to move on and to be receptive to what any coach could teach me.”
Thompson holds Whiting up as a role model to the athletes he coaches now, for many reasons – one important reason being attention to detail. “He has always documented everything ... which is something I encourage,” he says. “He’s very meticulous about record-keeping, for both competition and training. I actually compare him to Michael Jordan, because of his approach and competitiveness.”
Thompson, who still works with young athletes and also volunteer assists at Shippensburg State, also marvels at Whiting’s success at every level. “Ryan and I were talking about throwing 70 with both the 12- and 16-pound shot and that he’s been the last one to do it.” Indeed, only former Pennsylvania record holder Ron Semkiw (1972 and 1974), prep USR-holder and 1984 Olympic medalist Michael Carter (1979 and 1984), and former prep indoor USR-holder Brent Noon (1990 and 1995) have ever done 70 with both. “I think Ryan Crouser and Jordan Clarke may also do it soon.”
Proud to call Whiting a friend now, Thompson says he stays in touch with the Olympian. “On top of everything else, he’s good people and he comes from a good family.”
Whiting says if there’s anything he could pass along to high school athletes, it again comes down to receptiveness with different coaches. “You have to be open to others’ advice. You have to learn to be able to take the best of what each of your coaches has to offer.”
From that rare athlete who’s been consistently successful at every level, it’s advice to be heeded.
