Nanuet weight thrower Gabby Vizcarrando is a Nike Indoor Nationals Silver Medalist, Us No. 4 Ranked Weight Thrower, Two-Time New York State and Federation Champion and School, County and Section Record Holder.
Gabby’s track and field journey began in eighth grade, when she was still a volleyball player. After joining the modified winter track team to hang out with friends, she quickly fell in love with the sport and realized throwing was for her.
In just her freshman year she won the League Champion meet, beating out other athletes from Tappan Zee, Nyack and Pearl River. She would go on to win four League titles throughout her indoor track career.
She began to double down, with the throwing circle becoming her second home and 24 Hour Fitness her third. In her sophomore year she made it to the state meet, where she placed fourth in the state and sixth in the federation.
As a junior, Vizcarrondo attended her second indoor state championship meet. Fueled by adrenaline and her trademark Celsius, she stepped into the ring, anxious but composed, “locked in,” as she calls it.
One spin around the ring later, and she had a 52 foot, 7.75 inch throw under her belt and two gold medals around her neck: one for winning the state title amongst public schools, and one for winning the federation title, which takes private and city schools into account.
This year at states, she repeated as state and federation champion with a throw of 50-10.75 at the Ocean Breeze Track Complex in Staten Island.
At Nike Indoor Nationals this year, she unleashed her wrath upon the throwing pit at the Armory Track in Washington Heights, NYC. With a jaw-dropping throw of 57 feet, 3 inches, she took home the silver medal and broke the Section One weight throw record previously held by Monae Cooper of New Rochelle.
That means no girl from any Section One school has thrown as far as Gabby. Even before this throw, she held both the county record and the school record, which were updated accordingly. She then moved up to the #4 spot in the national rankings, proving that her skills are truly national-caliber.
In her official Nike Indoor Nationals interview, Gabby discussed her giant personal best, along with everything she felt in the moment.
She limited her expectations in the beginning, hoping to throw a personal best and achieve All-American status (top 6) but nothing crazy, at least in her eyes.
“I was just really excited because I wanted to throw a PR before ending my senior season,” she said. “And that’s all I could really ask for, but the PR was huge, so I just felt amazing.”
Even now, Vizcarrondo beams when reminiscing on the magical season. “I was… just plain happy,” she recalls, and that feeling hasn’t gone away.
Despite all her success, one person who was barely surprised was Coach Austin Peñate.
“Gabby’s success is, as a coach, something you can call inevitable,” he explains. “She works hard at her craft both at practice and on her own. She pays attention to the little things, asks the right questions, and most importantly, looks for any advance she can make, whether that’s in the weight room, in her technique or in her mindset.
He always believed in her ability to perform under pressure, she said.
“When you watch her, you know she’s going to do something incredible, and as a coach, you just hope that it comes at the right moment. After coaching Gabby the last four years you know that’s what truly makes her a special athlete. When the lights are the brightest and the pressure’s the highest, that’s when she enters the competition the most calm and collected.”
Not only is she an extraordinary athlete, but she is an extraordinary teammate. She’s always cracking jokes and laughing with coaches and teammates. She shows her passion for both the sport and the team at every practice and every meet. But most of all, she makes the Nanuet track team a place where people feel supported and loved.
Vizcarrondo knows how to bring it when it really matters. Her personal bests were at just the right time this season to take her to the top. And her dedication to the sport is a model for all young athletes and an inspiration to continue working hard and dreaming big.
Going into the spring season, Vizcarrondo is ready to take on even more. Although weight throw is a winter event, she will migrate to the discus and the hammer throw for outdoor meets, both of which she has the school record for.
The Nanuet community wishes her the best of luck in her future endeavors, this spring and beyond; She’s taking her throwing career up north to Cornell once her time at Nanuet comes to an end this June.