Andale’s Katelyn Fairchild youngest to qualify in javelin finals at US Olympic Trials
The improbable javelin career of Katelyn Fairchild has a new landmark moment.
It was an accomplishment for the 18-year-old recent graduate from Andale just to be included in the 24-athlete field at the U.S. Olympic Team Trials in Eugene, Ore.
But Fairchild surprised even herself by qualifying for the women’s javelin finals at the Olympic Trials and finishing 12th overall with a top throw of 160 feet, 11 inches. She was by far the youngest in the field comprised of the country’s top professional and collegiate throwers.
It was just the latest standout accomplishment for Fairchild, who less than a month ago won the Class 4A championship in the javelin with a throw of 170 feet, which was the farthest javelin throw in the history of the Kansas high school state track and field meet. Fairchild, who is headed to throw for Texas A&M, ranks second all-time in Kansas high school history with her personal-best throw of 175-4.
Not bad for someone who was ready to give up the event after two weeks of trying to throw the javelin. Fairchild was convinced she was never going to master the technique, which requires just as much finesse as it does power. She could only figure out the power part of the equation.
“I can’t even tell you how far I was throwing,” Fairchild said. “But I can tell you my javelin was landing the wrong way.”
When it came time for the Andale track and field coaches to pick which events to enter her in for her first high school meet, javelin coach Robby Spexarth even thought Fairchild might be better off trying high jump instead of javelin. As fate would have it, Andale already had enough high jumpers, leaving Fairchild to continue trying to figure out the javelin.
Four years later, Fairchild has cemented herself as one of the best javelin throwers in Kansas history.
“It’s so crazy because I would have never thought I would be in this position,” said Fairchild, who is also a standout volleyball and basketball player at Andale, before the Trials. “I always thought I was going to be a college volleyball player, but I kind of realized where I landed and track has gotten me here. I’ve been very blessed with everything.”
If the Fairchild name sounds familiar, it’s probably because you recognize it from the athletic achievements produced by the same family over the past decade in Andale.
Katelyn is the second-youngest sibling of seven in the Fairchild family who range from 32 to 16. All five of Katelyn’s older siblings have played sports in college, including Mason, who is a KU football player, and Grant, who is throwing javelin at Pittsburg State.
Natural sibling rivalries have developed over time with the athletic competitions in the family’s yard the stuff of legend. Katelyn says she still has a scar on her leg from running into a fire hydrant trying to escape a tackle in a family football game.
“We were always doing stuff that was athletics, as long as they were willing to do it at what we considered a high level,” said Tim Fairchild, their father, who is also the longtime defensive coordinator on the Andale football team. “We wanted them to compete at whatever it was, not just to do it to kill time. So I think they always pushed themselves and we’ve just been blessed with a lot of great kids and athletes. They’ve all kind of come into their own and it’s been a lot of fun to watch.”
Right behind Katelyn in age is McKenzie, a sophomore at Andale. If not for her older sister, she probably would have been a multiple-event state champion this weekend.
In fact, McKenzie’s second-place javelin throw of 159-2 is 27 inches farther than Katelyn’s championship-winning throw when she was a sophomore. It ranks as the second-best javelin throw in Kansas this season, only behind her sister.
“When she lets it fly, it just sails,” McKenzie said. “I’m hoping I can learn how to do that someday too.”
The Fairchild sisters also finished first and second in the shot put and discus, as Katelyn claimed her third career individual state title in the 4A shot put (42-2.5) with McKenzie (40-6) right behind. But it was the younger sister who took gold in the discus, as McKenzie tacked on more than six feet to her season-best mark to win the 4A title with a 140-0 throw with Katelyn coming in second at 132-10.
Both sisters credited their family for helping create a competitive environment that has allowed them to excel at the high school level.
“Having all of those siblings to look up to in all of their sports, it kind of pushes you and sets the bar for what you want to do,” Katelyn said. “And then having my sister (McKenzie) and cousin (Samantha Marx, third in javelin) push me every day in practice, I get to see the best competition in state every day.”
“It’s awesome to have her as a sister because I try to learn as much as I can from her until she leaves,” McKenzie said. “She helps push me and tells me what I need to do and I couldn’t ask for a better sister.”
That kind of individual competition is exactly why Tim and Tina Fairchild encouraged their children to compete in track and field during the spring.
“In track, the numbers win. They don’t lie,” Tim Fairchild said. “We’ve had some battles over the years and there’s been some feelings hurt, but they persevere and I think it makes them stronger and it fuels them to keep moving forward. You learn to become a good teammate, too. You learn to be resilient because you learn pretty fast that you’re not always going to be the best. I think that’s a great life lesson and that’s why we love track and field.”
Now that her high school career is over, Katelyn plans to start training full-time in the javelin.
She has been working with Project Javelin Gold, a program that plucks four of the most promising youth javelin throwers across the country and pays for them to travel the country to train with two-time Olympian and six-time U.S. champion Tom Pukstys. She even got to travel to Germany for a competition in the summer of 2019.
“It’s a once-in-a-lifetime kind of opportunity, so I’ve been extremely fortunate to be able to travel and train with them,” Katelyn said.
Spexarth, Andale’s javelin specialist, believes once Katelyn perfects her long approach she has the potential to break 200 feet in the javelin.
“The sky is the limit for her and there’s a reason why she’s going to Texas A&M,” Spexarth said. “Her dedication to the sport is second to none. She studies people. She studies herself. She works harder than anybody I’ve ever had before.”
On Friday, some nostalgia was setting in for Katelyn after she realized she had just completed her final state track and field meet. She has been coming to Cessna Stadium for state track since she was a girl to watch her older brothers and sisters compete.
While her chapter at Andale has come to a close, she admits she’s excited to see where javelin can take her in the future.
“It’s funny because I wanted to quit and now it’s been something that I’ve grown to love,” Katelyn said. “I’m really looking forward to the competition because I love doing this and I’m excited to do the best I can. I think I have a lot more left in me that I didn’t get to show out this season.”
This story was originally published May 29, 2021 at 10:16 AM.
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