Silver Creek graduate Valerie Allman wins gold in Olympic discus

After narrowly missing the qualifying mark for the 2016 Team USA women's discus team, Silver Creek graduate Valerie Allman made the mark and more in Tokyo.

Allman became just the third American since 1932 to win gold in the women's discus with a 69.98 meter (229.6 feet) hurl on Aug. 2. She backed up a 66.42 meter (217.9 feet) throw in the qualification round on July 30 which had then set a record for the farthest throw ever by an American woman in the Olympics, yet still short of her 70.15 meter (230.15 feet) personal best.

She joins Niwot alum Elise Cranny, who finished 13th in the women's 5,000m, on the growing list of local track and field products achieving their Olympic dreams. Allman and Cranny were roommates at Stanford while they competed for the Cardinal in college.

Silver Creek athletic director Patrick DeCamillis described Allman, a 2013 grad, as an inspiration to current Raptor athletes.

"It puts something that you can only see on TV into perspective that it is attainable for kids and it is attainable for Silver Creek students," DeCamillis said.

While at Silver Creek, Allman was a two-time 4A state champion and the 2012 Gatorade Girls Track and Field Athlete of the Year. She then competed at Stanford University and became a six-time All-American and a two-time Pac-12 champion.

DeCamillis said that Allman's accomplishments have made more than just Silver Creek proud.

"I think it's great for Valerie and I think it's great for not just Silver Creek, but St. Vrain (Valley School District) in general that we have such a talented group of students and athletes," Decamillis said.

Silver Creek head football coach Brian McGee was an assistant for the Raptors when he first met Allman while coaching her older brother, Kevin. McGee said he was sure to set an alarm to watch Allman's qualifying round on July 30.

"I always enjoyed watching her throw at the state track meets and stopping by practice and talking to her and having the opportunity to interact with her and her brother and her parents," McGee said. "I'm truly thrilled for them."

McGee agreed that Allman's continued success has been a motivator for Silver Creek's current and future generation of discus throwers.

"Anytime someone from your high school goes on to achieve the level of success that Valerie has... It's definitely an inspiration to students that are in the program here at Silver Creek," McGee said. "It's always somebody for them to look up to and aspire to be."