Emeric Tauolo Fuamatu broke his leg in August 2021 and seven months later has found himself standing on the number one podium at Homebush for the Australian Junior Track and Field Championships for his gold medal winning throw in Shot Put.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The 13-year-old Portland Central student threw 14.90 metres with a four kilogram shot put at Sydney Olympic Park on March 27 where he took the title as the Australian Champion in the under 15 age category.
It was a sensational finish to the youngster's 2021/2022 athletics season after he was only given clearance to walk on his leg in December 2021.
"I am so happy as I made a massive improvement in shot put, last month coming third at the NSW Junior Championships with a throw of 13.28 metres and now taking gold at nationals," he said.
Fuamatu's dad and trainer Matt Dawson said he required surgery on his leg and was given clearance to move freely, and within the week he was back into competition mode.
"That's when he went to the NSW All Schools down in Sydney. A week after clearance he was throwing at a state level event and performed quite well, and it was his first qualification for Nationals," he said.
Fuamatu has been putting in the hard yards despite the leg injury and was also training under the guidance of his Olympian uncle, Emanuele Fuamatu.
"My uncle represented Samoa at the 2012 Summer Olympics, he's been to the Commonwealth games and he also holds the under 14, 16 and 19 shot put records at the NSW All Schools," he said.
Dawson said he and Emanuele had put a comprehensive training program in place for Fuamatu and now the season was finished it was back into the gym and working onto the next big goal.
"Now it's back in the gym pretty hard until July and from there we'll start to go into throw training again and start the season all over again," he said.
He said Fuamatu will be aiming for World Juniors in the next couple of years.
"In two years time that's where we want to be and then one day hopefully the Commonwealth Games and Brisbane Olympics, that's the goal," he said.
He said he was very proud of his son's determination and achievements.
"We're very, very proud, everyone is very proud. He's pretty happy with himself and we ended the season a high so we're pretty happy with that," he said.
Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can access our trusted content:
Alanna Tomazin
Alanna is a journalist at the Newcastle Herald with a focus on education. She takes pride in regional journalism which she believes is crucial to informing our towns and cities. Have a story? Email her at alanna.tomazin@austcommunitymedia.com.au
Alanna is a journalist at the Newcastle Herald with a focus on education. She takes pride in regional journalism which she believes is crucial to informing our towns and cities. Have a story? Email her at alanna.tomazin@austcommunitymedia.com.au
