This story has been updated.
TRAVERSE CITY - Traverse City East Junior High’s Lorelai Zielinski set a national and school record in shot put.
The eighth grader tossed the shotput 49 feet 7.5 inches in the first track meet of the season. That distance topped the school record placed in 2009 and leads the second national ranked record by nearly four feet (according to her age group).
“It felt amazing,” said Zielinksi. “I let go and I knew that shot was going pretty far.”
Lorelai has thrown shotput since the sixth grade and participated in the AAU Junior Olympic Games. Her guidance throughout the process comes from her mom and coach, Amanda Zielinksi, who threw shotput when she was in high school.
“I’m just super amazed at what she’s accomplished,” said her mom. “It’s not where we imagined we would be in sixth grade.”
Lorelai has a personal goal of hitting 50 feet by the end of the season and before appearing in her third Junior Olympic Games.
UPDATE:
This past week, Zielinski attending the AAU Junior Olympics in Iowa for both Shot Put and Discus.
She placed 1st in Shot Put by throwing 53′ and earned a 3rd place medal for discus with a throw of 122′2″. Her first-place performance earned her a National Champion title.
