Washburn Rural’s Josh Sulzen-Watson remained patient through injury to become top thrower

TOPEKA — Throwers live a completely different life than the rest of any track and field roster. They don’t need to run far to warm up and they require implements that seem to date back to the Roman Empire. The throwing events are usually removed from the rest of the competition on the track as the biggest and strongest athletes go to battle.

Some of them are linemen, others are basketball rebounding giants and some specialize in the sport. The throwing community brings out some of the biggest characters who share a common denominator: their jovial spirit. They can make any sprinter smile as they compete in a throwers-only 4x100.

While a fierce face is needed in the trenches on the gridiron, you rarely see that near a ring.

Seaman track: Aaron Merritt's 'work ethic', Ryin Miller's drive push the duo to success

Take Washburn Rural’s Josh Sulzen-Watson, for example. He bounces around during competition with a larger-than-life smile, interacting with the competition while encouraging his teammates and sharing a laugh.

“You’ve got to make it exciting,' Sulzen-Watson said. "When you look at your team, we are so close together. We are helping each other and we want to create good energy. We always like talking to other kids, too. We talked to Shawnee Heights and Seaman kids which we always look forward to.”

When it’s the senior’s turn to enter the ring, he turns it on. His infectious smile becomes serious. It’s his time to do what he loves.

Highlights: See the action from the Joe Schrag City track and field meet

Sulzen-Watson is the best javelin thrower and second-best discus competitor in Class 6A. He hit his season personal best of 195 feet, 8 inches in Friday’s Joe Scrag City Meet — his mark is almost six feet better than the field. It also ranks third in the state.

His discus mark of 179 feet, 2 inches came in late March. Sulzen-Watson has struggled to find consistency before the City Meet because of an injury.

“Honestly, just to be patient. Everybody takes advantage if you haven’t been injured before,” he said. “It definitely was a setback, but it got me to relearn how to throw through the process of trust.”

Sulzen-Watson has leaned on his teammates during this spring season. Thankfully, they are equally as talented. Jamond Lane, Jacob Hawks and Andrew Holman are just a few that have performed well this season.

Vote: Who is the Topeka area's high school athlete of the week for April 29-May 4?

The throwing success stems from tough practices. When one enters the ring, the rest will either shout, "scratch" or throw rocks near them to distract their teammate. It is all in good fun, but it is paying dividends.

“I’ve learned to not let people get in my head,” Sulzen-Watson laughed.

While Sulzen-Watson is training to improve off his injury, he has kept his goals manageable. He did not talk much about winning a state title, he only shared his goal of earning a personal best each time he enters competition.

If he achieves a personal best each time, he may as well become one of the top throwers in Class 6A come late May.

“Not every day is going to be perfect, but you have got to make positives out of it,” Sulzen-Watson said.

The thrower plans to compete in college next season but has yet to make a decision.

Liam Keating covers high school sports for The Topeka Capital-Journal. Send stats or information to him at Lkeating@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: Washburn Rural’s Josh Sulzen-Watson shining to top thrower in Class 6A