Commonwealth Games: Hammer throw and discus competitor Matthew Denny drops 12kg to give him best chance of selection

DARLING Downs athlete Matthew Denny has lost 12kg to give himself the best chance at gaining selection this week in two Commonwealth Games field events.

Matthew Denny has cut out the chocolate milk and Greek kebabs in a bit for Commonwealth Games glory.

DARLING Downs athlete Matthew Denny has lost 12kg to give himself the best chance at gaining selection this week in two Commonwealth Games field events.

Denny, 21, has cut his favourite chocolate milk and kebabs from his diet and found he has gained extra speed and power for his bids to make the Australian team for the Gold Coast Games in both the hammer throw and discus.

A Rio Olympian in the discus, Denny is the only Australian with a Commonwealth Games A-qualifying distance in the hammer throw and is one of three Australians, all Queensland-based, to have met that standard in the discus.

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Both finals are on Friday at the four-day Australian titles at Carrara Stadium which start on Thursday.

Denny said he was 130kg when he threw his personal best distances but with the help of conditioning and diet specialists in Brisbane, where he moved to train late last year, he is better prepared to aim up in the selection trials in which Australian titles would guarantee him a place on the Australian team.

Matthew Denny has cut out the chocolate milk and Greek kebabs in a bit for Commonwealth Games glory.

“I wanted to be fitter and more athletic and create a better self image — I felt I was too heavy and wasn’t energetic,’’ said the son of an Allora farming family

“I’ve increased my strength and started moving faster and now I’m in PB (distances) almost by my first hammer throw comp (on February 3 in Brisbane.

“I have a pretty sweet tooth so I tried to cut out the sweets and maybe my biggest killers were chocolate milk or Greek kebabs, which are probably the best thing on earth. We are finding 118-120kg is a good weight for me in those events.’’

Athletics Australia’s scheduling of the Games selection trials were not helpful to Denny, a world youth junior discus champion, as he has a 10am hammer throw final on Friday, with a 7pm discus final later that day. Neither has preliminary rounds due to the number of entries.

“It was frustrating because we’d like to have a good time between the hammer and discus,’’ said Denny, who has retained a coaching association with Toowoomba’s Graham Pitt following his move to Brisbane.

“The discus, you have to be fresh to throw far, but it’s nothing we can’t handle.

“I’m going to try to get in and out of the hammer as soon as I can, then I’ll get to an ice bath and have some physio done before I get some food and stay hydrated. The schedule at the Commonwealth Games is better (for me).’’

Queensland-based quartet Benn Harradine (correct), Mitch Cooper, Denny and Julian Wruck are, in order, the four best performed Australian discus throwers in the Games qualifying period and Denny said the competition would be a “four-way go’’ for a maximum of three places in the Australian team under Games rules.

“If I get selected for both as I hope, I’m definitely going to do both,’’ he said.

Originally published as Commonwealth Games: Hammer throw and discus competitor Matthew Denny drops 12kg to give him best chance of selection