Nick Palmer: Kiwi shot putter previews the International Track Meet in Christchurch

Some of the country's best track and field talent will be on show in Christchurch this afternoon as the city hosts its annual International Track Meet.  

Tom Walsh, Nick Palmer, Anna Grimaldi, Lisa Adams, and Tiaan Whelpton are all set to compete in their respective events. 

Shot putter Nick Palmer has the home crowd advantage, and joined D’Arcy to preview the event. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:06):
You're listening to the All Sport Breakfast podcast with Darcy
Waldgrave from news Talk ZEDB.

Speaker 2 (00:11):
Joined by a man who throws huge bits of tin
for a living. His name is Nick Palmer. He's competing
in the shop. Put today morning to you and Nick,
you be feeling pretty good about yourself after what you've
been lobbing recently.

Speaker 3 (00:25):
Yeah, I am.

Speaker 4 (00:26):
Well, it's a hell of a bit of start than
they head for the rest of the season. So at
least we're on track now.

Speaker 2 (00:31):
So you pushed out over twenty meters? Yeah, and where
was that?

Speaker 3 (00:35):
That was? In Hamilton? So pora Classic in Hamilton is.

Speaker 4 (00:38):
Part of It's not officially part of the Summer circuit,
but unofficially it's part of our summer events.

Speaker 2 (00:42):
The Summer Circuit super cool. It really puts athletics in
the spotlight and it moves all over the nation.

Speaker 3 (00:50):
Yeah.

Speaker 4 (00:50):
Yeah, So this is part of our new team that's
come unto Athletics zeal And. This is part of the
kind of program and trying to connect these little classics
into a series where people can actually tour around and
string a bit of a season together.

Speaker 2 (01:03):
Well to be it, you got to see it. Always
say that, So to actually be able to have these
stars turn up and compete so valuable for the kids
coming through. So what have you got out there? You've
got your big competition literally and figuratively, Tom Walsh, are
you going Grimaldi out there competingly? Sir adam'stown Welton? So

(01:24):
we're not talking about washed up athletes from back in
the day, are we?

Speaker 3 (01:29):
No?

Speaker 4 (01:29):
Man Like It's hard to describe to people there on athletics,
but we are actually in a golden era across all
the events.

Speaker 3 (01:37):
We are stacked.

Speaker 4 (01:37):
And that's not even counting what's happening overseas with a
young gun. Sam Ruth and Sam Tenor are running over
in the indoor tour at the moment, and then all.

Speaker 3 (01:46):
Our pole voters who are are overseas as well. So
we are absolutely stacked.

Speaker 2 (01:51):
Why how has this worked out like that? How has
it all suddenly coming too focus? And you look right
across the board, track and field.

Speaker 3 (01:59):
Well, you know, we don't know.

Speaker 4 (02:01):
We've got a history of an athletics, like we've always
had good runners and we've had a couple of good
throws here in pop up. But I think it's hard
not to understate the influence people like Valerie Adams and
Nick willis Head when they were so successful for so
long and then coming off the back of the end
with Tom and Jacko for the throwing side of things

(02:21):
for us young boys, that was massive. So you know,
you only need that one staff for a little bit
to kind of influence the next generation to come through
and hopefully we keep that all rolling now.

Speaker 2 (02:32):
And that's what it did for you. You look to
Tom and you look there and when actually hold on,
this looks so right.

Speaker 3 (02:39):
Yeah yeah.

Speaker 4 (02:39):
So, I mean, as any other kid in New Zealand,
I was rugby mad and did a little bit of
athletics just because I was big and I could throw far.
And then I think it was I want to say
it was one of the pots classics where I went
down to watch I think it's all Jacko competing there
and that kind of hooked me a little bit more
and spending more and more time watching it on TV
as it kind of came to the limelight a little

(03:02):
bit in the twenty tens, and seeing Tom be so
successful and seeing jack Oby so successful and Bellerie was
still there and.

Speaker 3 (03:09):
It just filled every hole in my life. I loved it.

Speaker 2 (03:12):
And Nick Palmer joins us his shot put. He is
competing in christ Church. It's a home international track meet
for him. Does that Does it make a difference.

Speaker 3 (03:22):
It's different. It's completely different.

Speaker 4 (03:24):
Like we're you know, half our jobs traveling, so to
cut the travel out it. At the same time, it
feels nice, it feels relaxing, but it also doesn't feel
quite the same intensity leading up to it because you're
just at home, you're doing any normal stuff, so you're
kind of got to fake it a little bit and
try and get yourself up for it.

Speaker 2 (03:40):
What about friends and family, Is that at a bit
of pressure that they tune up and blow raspberries from
the stands?

Speaker 3 (03:46):
Yeah? Yees.

Speaker 4 (03:47):
On comp day, it's completely different because you look at
at the crowd and I know that person or that
person and that person, so that it's different, Like obviously
they care about you and so there's that's kind of relaxing.
At the same time you want to show off of them.
So it just comes with a whole different feeling of
emotion than the normal competitions.

Speaker 2 (04:05):
Do of the athlete? Are you as far as shape
and size and technique in style? I mean you're are
you like a massive lump who just bullies the shot
as far as you can and are more relaced on
spring and on technique. How do you operate?

Speaker 3 (04:19):
So this is funny, So every kind of day to
day living. I'm a big dude.

Speaker 4 (04:24):
I'm bigger than anyone else I know in my private life,
but actually in throwing i'm tiny.

Speaker 3 (04:29):
You know.

Speaker 4 (04:29):
We've got guys that are six foot five, six ft six,
one hundred and sixty kilos and they hardly have to
move through the circle to throw it far.

Speaker 3 (04:36):
So for guys like.

Speaker 4 (04:37):
Me, for guys like Tom who are on the smaller side,
we've we've got to move, We've got to be athletes
in the circle.

Speaker 3 (04:42):
So everything we do is about moving quick and being springing.

Speaker 2 (04:45):
That's a wonderful thing to see, though, isn't it. When
you look at shot put, you think that's just great
big lumps, But there's so much more doing. I mean,
like any discipline, technique is absolute key. And as you're saying,
especially in your trade with your size.

Speaker 4 (05:00):
Yeah I'm biased because I'm a shot putter, but I
think shotput is one of the most impressive means when
you see these huge men moving as quickly as we
do and with as much kind of freedom and range
that we do.

Speaker 3 (05:11):
It's honestly, it's so cool to say.

Speaker 2 (05:13):
And what's on the line for you? Plainly you're moving forward?
Are you looking at Commonwealth Games? Anything further than that?

Speaker 3 (05:20):
Nick?

Speaker 4 (05:21):
Yeah, So, I mean this year we kind of go
year by year and then four year cycles to line
up with the Olympics. So this year we've got wield
indoors after the domestic season, which I was still qualifying for,
and then I'll head to Europe like we do every year,
and then it'll all lead into the Common Games. So
currently I'm sitting with two B standards for the Common
Games and I'm going to need an A just because

(05:42):
we've got so many people who are able to hit
the B standard this year.

Speaker 2 (05:45):
Chop out the A. It starts at Napunaway from one
o'clock the safternoon. You want to find out more about it,
gets some tickets, International Track Meet dot co, dot n Z,
get amongst cause a Ruckus. Great to chat to you, Nick.

Speaker 3 (06:00):
Palmer, Dirtie Matte, thank you so much.

Speaker 1 (06:03):
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