Gabriella Knutsen (junior) recently broke her personal record by throwing the shot put for a total distance of 38’6.75’’ (11.75m). Feb. 17, Knutsen represented the Occidental track and field team at the NAU Tune Up, Northern Arizona University’s final regular season meet in Flagstaff, AZ. She placed eighth at NAU Tune Up and sixth on Occidental’s All-Time list.
According to Christopher Merced, the throws coach at Occidental who has been coaching Knutsen since Spring 2021, Knutsen’s performance has been exceptional, and she’s gone through a smooth transition from high school to college despite the interruptions caused by the pandemic.
“[Knutsen] threw 36 feet with an 8-pound [shot put] in high school, and she improved her score by throwing 37 feet with an 8.8-pound [shot put] her first competing season in college,” Merced said.
With one year of training compromised due to the pandemic, Knutsen has tried to make the most out of her shortened collegiate athletic career since her sophomore year.
In February 2022, during one of her very first collegiate dual meets against Pomona-Pitzer, Knutsen was awarded Track and Field Athlete of the Week by the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC). Her shot put total distance of 36’6.25’’ placed her first at the dual meet, and it also introduced her entrance to the college’s All-Time list as eighth place.
“Occidental has been around since 1887, and it is nice to be reflected on its history,” Knutsen said.
After competing for one year, in Spring 2023, Knutsen’s coaches decided to let her compete in the indoor track and field season in addition to the outdoor season, Merced said. According to Merced, the indoor track and field season has a different set of schedules, and the college throws team doesn’t normally compete in it.
“[NAU Tune Up] was an indoor all comers meet, and many participants at the NAU meet were NCAA Division I athletes,” Merced said. “Since Knutsen threw well last year, [the senior coaching team] decided to take her along with three other athletes to compete in Arizona. This was the first year that we had a shot-putter go.”
Having over 10 years of coaching experience, Merced said the pressure at the NAU Tune Up was a good experience for Knutsen because it allowed her to take the next step and achieve her personal record. Knutsen said her improvements in shot put are also closely associated with strength training and conditioning.
“I’ve been getting in the weight room a lot, and the decision to take on the indoor season this year also gave me additional training days,” Knutsen said.
Nico Morales (first year), Knutsen’s teammate who throws the javelin, said Knutsen is always early for practice, and she is someone to look up to.
Professor Damian Stocking from the Comparative Studies in Literature and Culture (CSLC), who also has a background in track and field, describes Knutsen as a delight to have in class and a credit to the long tradition of Occidental Athletics.
Stocking said via email that Knutsen exemplifies the truth of the Melvillian insight, which decries those who sought to separate mind from body, and the head from the heart.
“Herman Melville once wrote that in those ‘who have fine brains and work them well, the heart extends down to (hamstrings),’” Stoking said via email.
As a CSLC major, Knutsen extended her heartfelt passion in shot put to the corpse of literature.
“We read Plato’s Republic, which talks about academics and physical training,” Knutsen said. “Professor Stocking supported me to write my final paper on shot put, Plato and Jean-Luc Nancy.”
Stocking said Knutsen’s work has expounded brilliantly upon what she calls the ‘poetics of kinesis,’ which refers to the poetic thinking of movement and the movement of poetic thinking.
“Her accomplishments in the classroom and the stadium have been equally remarkable,” Stocking said via email. “It might seem extravagant to say so, but I would suggest that her practice of pushing beyond the limit of what we have thus far been able to think about our bodies and selves in poetry and philosophy helps her in some way find that precious extra distance as she hurls the shot put physically out beyond the boundary of the ring — and vice versa!”
When asked what she sees in the rest of her collegiate athletic career, Knutsen said she felt she is getting into a good rhythm and making progress and thinks she can do a lot this season. Knutsen might be a junior, but she is trying new things — Knutsen said she recently started learning the javelin.
According to Merced, based on the way she’s been practicing, Knutsen will soon be ready to compete in a conference with the javelin, despite picking it up recently.
Knutsen said she’s enjoyed making a 20-foot improvement on her javelin throw during this month’s Oxy Alumni meet with a final score of 87’6”. She said her goal this season is to hit 100 feet if she can consolidate her footwork techniques. Meanwhile, Knutsen is looking forward to solidifying her rotational techniques for shot put and discus throws.
“Throwing is about managing your ability to stay calm and collected, but also finish at the end and really get that explosion out,” Knutsen said. “If I’m able to keep [the force] back, I’m able to generate more power and get a further throw.”
Contact Renee Ye at rye@oxy.edu.
