MONROE, La. --- When the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics roll around on August 8 one of ULM's most prominent athletic alumni will be getting his third chance at Olympic gold. Javelin thrower Breaux Greer was added to the Olympic squad earlier this week.
Hobbled by a shoulder injury, the Monroe, La., native and three-time All-American while with the Warhawks was added to the team despite missing out on the finals at the Olympic Trials. One of only three American athletes with the United States "A" Standard of 268 feet, four inches in the event, Greer assumed his spot on the Olympic squad because his appointment did not displace a qualified athlete.
The injury exception allows the U.S. to send three athletes ? including Greer ? to the Olympic Games instead of only two.
Greer achieved his "A" Standard throw after posting an American record heave of 91.29 meters (299.6 feet) and a first place finish at the U.S. Outdoor Championships held in Indianapolis, Ind. on June 21, 2007. An eight-time United States Champion, Greer also competed in the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, Australia and the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, Greece.
In his last international competition, Greer placed third at the 11th World Championships in Athletics in Osaka, Japan with a throw of 86.21 meters. He finished behind Finland's Tero Pitkamaki and Norway's Andreas Thorkildsen who will both compete in Beijing.
It was at the World Championships where Greer injured his shoulder, a problem that kept him out of competition through the beginning of the 2008 season and up to the Olympic Trials.
Greer will be looking to become ULM's third gold medal winning athlete in any sport. If he accomplishes the feat he will join former ULM greats Ben Sheets (baseball, 2000) and Glynn Saulters (men's basketball, 1968).
Greer will represent the United States in the javelin with teammates Mike Hazle, the 2008 Olympic Trials Runner-UP, and Leigh Smith, the fifth-place finisher at the Olympic Trials.
