Senior Grand View track and field athlete James Plummer is one of the team’s biggest stars. It wasn’t always that way. Born and raised in Columbia, South Carolina, Plummer was a quarterback. He had hopes of continuing his football career in college but was unable to do so because of an injury. Going into his junior year of high school, he decided to try out track and field as a hobby. Plummer turned out to be very good at the sport and decided to continue his throwing career in college.
“When I was first starting, I wasn’t all that good,” Plummer said. “I just wanted to do it to stay in shape and have something to do after classes and school. Eventually it just started to snowball into something.
When deciding which school to attend, Plummer visited East Carolina University, Rutgers University, University of Alabama, Oregon State University and then Clemson University. All along, Plummer knew that Clemson was his No. 1 choice. He grew up a Clemson fan, and his campus visit reaffirmed his love for it. Plummer spent two years as a thrower for Clemson before making his transition to GV. Because of several NCAA rules, it was hard for Plummer to find a school he could finish out his last two years of throwing at. Luckily, he was able to get in contact with the Iowa Central Community College coach and work with him to take classes just to be able to stay on campus and get financial aid. After one semester here, James transferred to GV.
While competing in indoor meets, Plummer throws shot put and weight. When it comes to outdoors, he throws shot put, hammer, and discus. Discus is his favorite. It was the first event he did in high school, and he fell in love with it.
“My favorite part of being in Des Moines is the people,” Plummer said. “I had a few other options of places to go but chose to go here because of the atmosphere. The campus is really cool, the teachers are very accommodating when it comes to traveling for track and things of that nature. It definitely was the best fit for me.”
Being away from home hasn’t been an issue for Plummer. Although he misses his family and hometown, he is a big fan of traveling, and track has allowed him to travel all over the country and even to different countries. It has allowed him to meet some of his best friends.
Throughout Plummer’s career, he has had many accomplishments. Plummer was able to win the New Balance Nationals, which is the overall national meet for high school athletes. He was also able to compete for Team USA in 2012 in Barcelona. He barely missed out on the 2014 World Junior Finals.
In 2016, he qualified for the Olympic Trials. Unfortunately, due to an injury, he was unable to attend.
“For the next few years I will be getting ready for some big competitions,” Plummer said. “Next year I will be preparing for Tokyo as long as my training progresses from this year to next.
Later in the year, Plummer will be competing in the Drake Relays as well as the USA trials. That is probably where he will see some of the best competition and might feel the most pressure.
The World Championship trials will be held in Des Moines this summer. The top three will then go to Doha, Qatar, to compete. The next two people go to Lima, Peru, to compete in the Pan American Games. Making it to the Pan American Games is Plummer’s ultimate goal.
“My favorite experience was being able to compete in Spain,” Plummer said. “I was able to meet people from 95 different countries, including some of my best friends. They are now currently in Germany, Great Britain, Sweden, all over the world. It was probably one of the best experiences I have ever had.”
Plummer is good, but he’s not done yet. He believes there is always something to improve on. He is constantly looking for ways to be better and is determined to continue improving until he meets his goals.
While training for all of these big events, Plummer is still finishing his senior year off as a finance major. He takes it day by day. Some days are more busy than others, but he tries to balance it all out.
“I definitely enjoy my major, which helps,” Plummer said. “I enjoy what I am studying, and I enjoy the field I am in, so it makes school a lot easier. Most importantly I just make sure that I am having fun. It’s my last year as a collegiate athlete, I just want to enjoy my time.
Next year, Plummer will start training professionally in Phoenix, Arizona, with Eric Johnson, who is the head coach at Arete Throws Nation. Johnson will be his sponsor and will help him with all the traveling Plummer will be doing. Alongside him will be one other professional thrower. They will be traveling to Australia next January for a training camp.
