Newspaper Photographer Speared By Javelin

Ryan McGeeney Managed To Snap Photo Of His Own Injury At Utah Track Championship

(AP)  A newspaper photographer got a little too close to the action at the state high school track championships - and was speared through the leg by a javelin.

Ryan McGeeney of the Standard-Examiner was spared serious injury Saturday, and even managed to snap a photo of his speared leg while others tended to him.

"If I didn't, it would probably be my editor's first question when I got back," McGeeney said.

The 33-year-old McGeeney, an ex-Marine who spent six months in Afghanistan, was taking pictures of the discus event and apparently wandered into off-limits area set aside for the javelin.

Striking just below the knee, the javelin tip went through the skin and emerged on the other side of his leg.

"It wasn't real painful. ... I was very lucky in that it didn't hit any blood vessels, nerves, ligaments or tendons," McGeeney said.

Much of the javelin was cut off at the scene. The piece in McGeeney's leg was removed at a hospital, and he received 13 stitches.

The javelin was thrown by Anthony Miles, a Provo High School student who said his "heart just stopped" when he saw what happened.

"One of the first things that came to my mind was, 'Good thing we brought a second javelin,"' Miles' coach, Richard Vance, said Monday. He said Miles was "in a little bit of shock," but he assured the athlete it was not his fault.

With a subsequent throw, Miles went on to win the state title in javelin for teams in Provo High's size classification, 4-A.

[cfin5]

Gotta laugh (not too much) at the Marine wanting to take a picture of it. That''s about right.....He''s right about that kind of wound I guess. I was running when young with a 3 pronged garden weeder and thinking how it looked neat while spinning it in the air, until I fell. As I''m looking at my left arm above the wrist I only noticed two prongs and wondering where the thir.......then I saw it bulging up under the skin facing me. Never felt it go in. Pulled my arm off of it and acted like it didn''t hurt so Mom wouldn''t lecture me. You know, "I told you a million times blah blah blah. She didn''t need too as I was done learning that kind of lesson.

[toolmangler-2009]

OO RAH!!!!

[fabrat1]

"One of the first things that came to my mind was, ''Good thing we brought a second javelin,"''

Oh my that''s not very nice.

[brianbwb-2009]

"If I didn''t, it would probably be my editor''s first question when I got back," McGeeney said."


If I had so cold an editor, my answer would be "ask your daughter, she has photos of me on top."

"One of the first things that came to my mind was, ''Good thing we brought a second javelin,"'' Miles'' coach, Richard Vance, said Monday."

And to Mr. Vance i''d say "too bad you weren''t the victim".

[sistatee-2009]

Javelin-catching, a new Olympic sport.

[hwy71so]

Well, I''m glad they did have another javelin. Good job on Miles'' win.

You''ll stay out of the way next time and pay attention to what''s going on around you, won''t you McGeeney? You should have already learned that in the ''stan!

[honestabe8]

When I was in High School (best 7 years of my life), I was competing in the Shot Put at an invitational meet in Ann Arbor. There was some guy (with his heart in the right place, but his head up his arse) who was helping the Shot Putters warm up by catching their warmup throws and rolling them back to the circle. Needless to say, this poor shlub ended up getting his knee bashed by the 12 lb shot.