SHE'S HAVING A REAL FIELD DAY STUDENT, 52, HEADS TO THE JAVELIN FINALS.Byline: Gerry Gittelson Staff Writer VALENCIA - In her first track and field season, Linda Cohn Linda Cohn (born November 10, 1959) is a sportscaster who appears on ESPN's SportsCenter as an anchor. As a teenager, Cohn, a New Yorker, demonstrated talent at ice hockey, joining her high school's boys team for eight games. of College of the Canyons College of the Canyons is one of the fastest-growing community colleges in the state. According to the National Junior College Research Association, College of the Canyons consistently ranks in the top 50 community colleges in the nation. has qualified for the state community college finals in the javelin tonight in Sacramento. A nice achievement for anyone. But an incredible feat for a 52-year-old woman who is 5 feet 4 inches tall, weighs 120 pounds and until recently had never participated in organized sports. ``I think when a lot of our opponents first see Linda, they don't think she's actually competing against them,'' said teammate Dana Rattler, who, like most of the team members, is about 30 years younger than Cohn. ``Then she goes out there, and nobody expects her to be so good. She always surprises everybody.'' Cohn, a Northridge dental hygienist dental hygienist n. A person trained and licensed to provide preventive dental services, such as cleaning the teeth, usually in conjunction with a dentist. who's been married for 28 years and has two college-age sons, is a little surprised herself. ``I suppose it's a bit crazy because I never did anything like this until I turned 50. When I was younger, girls just didn't have opportunities like they have today. In high school, the only thing I ever did was P.E.'' Cohn, whose mother died at 50 of brain cancer, turned to sports when she turned 50 to combat thoughts of her own mortality. She ran the L.A. Marathon, barely finishing, and decided running wasn't for her. As a lifelong fan of the Summer Olympics, she decided to try the javelin because she remembered having a good arm playing softball when she was younger. Cohn began competing in local Masters meets for athletes 50 and older. One day she was practicing at the college and was ``discovered'' by the track coaches. ``Linda goes up against these 20-year-old whippersnappers and beats them all,'' said Rick Kauffman, who coaches the team's throwers. ``It's really a crackup crack·up or crack-up n. Informal 1. A crash, as one involving an airplane or automobile. 2. A mental or physical breakdown. watching the faces of her opponents.'' In her first meet for College of the Canyons, Cohn competed in the discus discus /dis·cus/ (dis´kus) pl. dis´ci [L.] disk. dis·cus n. pl. dis·ci A flat circular surface; a disk. discus pl. disci [L.] 1. and shot put because the team didn't have anyone entered. She didn't win but that changed when the athletes moved to the javelin. Cohn won, and the victories are now commonplace. Perhaps the most difficult part has not been on the field but in the classroom. Cohn has to take 12 units to be eligible to compete on the track team. ``Most of my classes are easy, like track and weight lifting weight lifting, international sport, also a training technique for athletes in other sports. From the earliest times men have lifted weights as a test of strength. ,'' she said. ``But I'm also taking a class called athletic training athletic training Sports medicine The practice of physical conditioning and reconditioning of athletes and prevention of injuries incurred by athletes. See Athlete, Athletic trainer. , and that wasn't such a good idea because I'm taking tests like crazy.'' That's now something she shares with son Scott, a 20-year-old California State University, Northridge CSUN offers a variety of programs leading to bachelor's degrees in 61 fields and master's degrees in 42 fields. The university has over 150,000 alumni. It's also home to a summer musical theater/theater program known as TADW (TeenAge Drama Workshop) that leads teenagers through an , student not more than a year or two older than his mom's opponents. ``Honestly, it's amazing,'' said Scott, who goes to all his mom's meets to cheer her on. ``I don't know Don't know (DK, DKed) "Don't know the trade." A Street expression used whenever one party lacks knowledge of a trade or receives conflicting instructions from the other party. how to explain it. I never imagined she could do this.'' Cohn qualified for the state finals last Saturday with a throw of 114 feet, 6 inches, at the Southern California Southern California, also colloquially known as SoCal, is the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Centered on the cities of Los Angeles and San Diego, Southern California is home to nearly 24 million people and is the nation's second most populated region, championships in Mission Viejo Mission Vi·e·jo A community of southern California southeast of Irvine. It is mainly residential. Population: 96,300. , grabbing the sixth and final spot by a margin of 4 inches. Because of her size, Cohn takes an 80-foot running approach, compared with just a few steps for most of her competitors, who are around 200 pounds and also throw the discus and shot put. ``At first it was kind of intimidating going up against these younger women,'' Cohn said. ``I guess they thought I was kind of crazy to be out there.'' About the only person who didn't think she was crazy or wasn't surprised by her success was her husband, Craig. ``If you really know Linda, this is actually pretty routine. Believe me, I know because I've lived with her for 28 years. The unusual is expected in our house, so for her to beat a bunch of college kids really doesn't surprise me. ``Linda is not like other people. Of course, she's older so maybe her body doesn't hold up as well, but she's good at anything she puts her mind to. She knows that sometimes you only get one shot in life.'' Gerry Gittelson, (661) 257-5218 gerry.gittelson(at)dailynews.com CAPTION(S): photo Photo: (color) College of the Canyons athlete Linda Cohn practices her javelin technique during a team practice. She'll compete in the state community college finals tonight. John Lazar/Staff Photographer |
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