Vivian Massey makes history in adaptive shot put

STURGIS — Vivian Massey has something that nobody will ever be able to take away from her.

It wasn't an easy accomplishment by any means, no matter what any of the naysayers might say.

Last week at the Division 4 track and field tournament, Massey took first place in the adaptive shot put event. The adaptive world of track and field for high school is expanding and the MHSAA has continued to evolve its finals in that field and will look at making more changes in the future as well. A two-year trial period in wheelchair adaptive events such as the 100, 200 and 400 meters plus the shot put event have taken place already.

But now, the MHSAA is allowing adaptive athletes to compete in other ways than a wheelchair. Massey, a freshman at Sturgis High School, has Achondroplasia dwarfism, which is the most common type of dwarfism. ACH is a genetic disorder that causes short stature and disproportionately short limbs due to abnormal bone growth.

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"It's really exciting, I'm pretty proud of it, for sure," Massey said. "I was really nervous, but then I like this is just a regular meet and I did what I needed to do."

Her regional title distance was 12-3.5 feet in distance. It was the first time she competed with the 4kg shot, she had been competing with one half the weight all season. Massey was the first MHSAA Division 1 adaptive athlete in the history of Michigan track and field to compete who was not in a wheelchair.

"It was something great to see, Vivian has put in a lot of hard work," Sturgis track coach J.B. Starkey said.

Massey said stretching and listening to her type of music — full blast, probably a Travis Scott song — gets her ready to go. Now, she will look to turn that music up just enough to calm some of her nerves as she will compete in the Division 1 state finals next Saturday in East Kentwood.

She's no stranger to having eyes on her at track and field events. Massey has competed for the Trojans a handful of times this season and also competed during the indoor season as well.

"I like hanging out with my team, we have a lot of fun," Massey said. "I love the van rides. The throwers are a nice group of people and we have some funny people."

Both SHS girl's track coach Lesley Starkey and Andy Hatt, athletic director, have helped push the evolvement forward as well. The proposal by Sturgis in March helped make it a permanent part of the track and field tournament. Massey is certainly appreciative of that.

"I commend the MHSAA and their efforts to make track a more inclusive sport and hope to see more athletes like Vivian compete in the future," Lesley said. "I have known Vivan and her family since they went through Congress Elementary. It makes me so proud to see her step out of her comfort zone and compete at such a high level. Whether she realizes it or not, she has become a role model to many others throughout the state; seeing her in the ring will hopefully give others the confidence to compete as well."

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She's overcome a lot, obviously. Massey said bullying was a part of her almost everyday life during her middle school years, but it's much better now that she is in high school. She has good days and bad days like anybody else, but she also has a new perspective on it as well.

"I was always told I was bullied when I was younger because other people feel bad about themselves. But that made me sad, because I don't want other people to feel bad about themselves," she said. "I try to always be nice to people, but sometimes it can be hard. But when I think about bullying, after a while I just stopped caring. I didn't let it bother me."

At the regional last week, Massey competed against Molly Katic, a sophomore from Fenton High School. They will once again compete at the Division 1 finals on June 1.

Massey said she is happy the MHSAA is expanding its adaptive field to include more student-athletes in competition. But she's also looking forward to doing her best and competing at the highest level possible.

"State championship. That's what I want," she said. "I need to keep practicing, keep getting better."

In the future, Massey said she'd like to be able to compete in both the discus and 100 meter events. She feels like she is just another student-athlete on the Sturgis track and field team, it simply feels right.

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"She's always been around these kids, her teammates don't treat her any different," mom Kelly Massey said on Saturday morning. "She grew up with (older brother) Alex's friends, so they are like a bunch of big brothers for her."

Massey echoed the comments from mom, saying being a part of the team is a wonderful thing.

"It feels really good. It's like my first accomplishment in sports," she said. "The team has been very supportive of me, which makes me feel great."

Sturgis will compete in the Division 1 finals on Saturday, June 1 at East Kentwood High School. The Trojans have Massey competing in the adaptive shot put and plenty of other student-athletes as well.

Contact Sports Editor Brandon Watson at bwatson@gannett.com. Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @BwatsonSJ.

This article originally appeared on Sturgis Journal: Sturgis' Vivian Massey makes history in adaptive shot put