Dr. Suzanne Konz of Marshall University’s College of Health Professions will travel to Chiba, Japan, in August to train hammer throw athletes for the 2015 International Association of Athletics Federation Track and Field World Championships.

Konz, who has worked with USA Track and Field since 2003, said while this is her first invitation to assist with training camp for the World Championships, she does not consider it the pinnacle of her career.

“I am and always have been honored and grateful to be able to work with USA Track and Field and the athlete’s at that level,” Konz said. “I never take any of it for granted.”

Dr. Iain Hunter, a professor at Brigham Young University with a research focus on track and field mechanics, served as Konz’s advisor at BYU when she was a doctoral student. In a news release, Hunter said Konz has a great passion for sport biomechanics, which has allowed her to work with some of the leaders in the field.

“Dr. Konz has earned the respect of many of the best throwers in the U.S.,” Hunter said in a news release. “She is well-respected with her knowledge of technology and mechanics. This has placed her in a position to work with many elite athletes and coaches across the country.”

While her expertise has allowed her the opportunity to work with some of the best athletes in the nation, Konz said she is always eager to help Herd athletes train and improve in their respective sport.

“Marshall Sports Medicine and Marshall Strength and Conditioning uses me to test and assess any of Marshall’s athletes as needed. Our collective goal is to make the athletes more durable for the rigors of their sport and season to hopefully reduce or minimize injury.”

In order to prepare for the World Championships, Konz plans to review film of the six athletes she will be helping train.

“I have a lot of video clips on many of them,” Konz said. “Those that I don’t, I’ll do some digging on the internet to find footage. I’ll also look at footage of the world leaders, if I can find it, to see what exactly they are doing. The big thing that I will focus on is refinement and simple corrections.”

Konz added that keeping the athletes’ coaches involved in the training process is important to their success.

“I will be filming and communicating with coaches back here in the States,” Konz said. “Not every athlete will have their coach there. Keeping the coach and the athlete connected is critical to the athlete’s comfort as they make their final preparations for the 2015 World Championships.”

Malcolm Walton can be contacted at [email protected].