Curtis Beach

[roywhite]

Duke's greatest athlete ever? Well, I guess we should let him enroll first. :) He is an incoming freshman from Albuquerque, NM, who is an amazing all-around track athlete. DBR has had some front page articles.

http://www.dyestat.com//?pg=us2009-Outdoor-Great-Southwest-Decathlon

Here's the latest achievement for Curtis, who became the greatest HS decathlete ever.

Curtis, congrats on a great high school career, and thanks for choosing Duke. We'll follow your career with great interest.

[mgtr]

That is just amazing. I had never heard of him, but will be interested in his career. Thanks for posting the info.

[Bluedog]

Yeah, quite an amazing athlete. It was a fairly big surprise he chose Duke over more traditional track and field schools. Duke only has like what, 5 men's track and field scholarships? And they're usually divided among a lot more people than that. Beach is getting an 80% scholarship his first two years, while getting 100% his final two years. At Duke, that is pretty rare, but Beach is a rare athlete. It didn't hurt that we recently picked up a new assistant coach in Shawn Wilbourn, who played in the NFL and was a great decathlete.



"I wanted not to be intrigued by the glamour of each place and just focus on my criteria," Beach says. "In the end, [Duke] was a clear first choice even though on the surface it looks terrible because historically they haven't been a great track program. They're definitely on the rise."

http://www.usatoday.com/sports/preps/track/2009-05-06-curtis-beach-decathlon_N.htm

[roywhite]

...Beach is a rare athlete. It didn't hurt that we recently picked up a new assistant coach in Shawn Wilbourn, who played in the NFL and was a great decathlete.



http://www.goduke.com/ViewArticle.dbml?SPSID=22491&SPID=1835&DB_OEM_ID=4200&ATCLID=1577620&Q_SEASON=2008

Here is a profile on Coach Wilbourn. He seems very well qualified to help mold an athlete like Curtis who can be a world-class decathlete and future Olympian.

[SilkyJ]

Any track folks here care to enlighten as to what "international implements" vs "HS implements" means?

When I ran a quick search it seemed like something to do with the type of javelins/discs that they used, but I couldn't find any details of the difference...

[sagegrouse]

Any track folks here care to enlighten as to what "international implements" vs "HS implements" means?

When I ran a quick search it seemed like something to do with the type of javelins/discs that they used, but I couldn't find any details of the difference...

Somewhere in the middle of the last century of the second millennium, the high school shot was 12 pounds, while the college shot was 16 pounds. There were similar differences in the discus. WRT the javelin, I am clueless because after a few high schoolers were impaled on a tossed spear, the sport was dropped in my native state.

I dunno if the same standards apply today.

sagegrouse

[roywhite]

Somewhere in the middle of the last century of the second millennium, the high school shot was 12 pounds, while the college shot was 16 pounds. There were similar differences in the discus. WRT the javelin, I am clueless because after a few high schoolers were impaled on a tossed spear, the sport was dropped in my native state.

I dunno if the same standards apply today.

sagegrouse

On the right track. The "international implements" refers to differences in three events---shot put, discus, and high hurdles. The international shot is 16 lbs vs the high school shot 12 lbs; the international discus is 2 kg vs 3 lbs 9 oz., and the international high hurdles are 42 inches high vs 39 inches high.

By the way, the day after his recent decathlon performance, Beach ran on a 4x400 relay and did a 46.45 split for his leg. That's really outstanding. I'd say his best individual events at this point are running events of 400m and 800m (400m is part of the decathlon; 800m is not).

[Shammrog]

Wow. That's amazing. Especially since he looks *awfully* skinny. A few more years of physical maturation and development and he could be downright scary.

[Gargoyle]

Here is an article from The Chronicle:

http://sports.chronicleblogs.com/

[NSDukeFan]

Any chance he can guard perimeter basketball players?

[ttruitt]

This young man Curtis Beach appears pretty special. He is easily the best high school decathlete, and had his choice of big name track schools. Instead, he chose Duke! This could help put one of Duke's 'Olympic' sports on the map. He could help make our program, he is a big deal. He certainly has a shot at qualifying for the Olympic team some day. Keep an eye on him in years to come.

[Newton_14]

Any chance he can guard perimeter basketball players?

You beat me to the punch. My question was going to be "Can he play the point in basketball?"

[CMARTZ]

You've probably read about Curtis Beach, the incoming decathlete from Albuquerque, New Mexico. As a former teammate of his, I can attest to his work ethic and character and I'm excited to see him around campus next year. Just a few hours ago our mayor named July 1st Curtis Beach Day in honor of the model he sets for student athletes.

http://www.abqjournal.com/abqnews/abq-cityseeker/13561-track-phenom-curtis-beach-wins-award-his-own-day.html

[OZZIE4DUKE]

You've probably read about Curtis Beach, the incoming decathlete from Albuquerque, New Mexico. As a former teammate of his, I can attest to his work ethic and character and I'm excited to see him around campus next year. Just a few hours ago our mayor named July 1st Curtis Beach Day in honor of the model he sets for student athletes.

http://www.abqjournal.com/abqnews/abq-cityseeker/13561-track-phenom-curtis-beach-wins-award-his-own-day.html
Thanks, and welcome to the DBR boards! Enjoy your stay and post often!