Cuban Discus Queen talks with Throwholics

Throwholics contacted the Denia Caballero (born 13 January 1990) to talk about her goals for the upcoming World Championships. Caballero is currently leading the world with a massive throw of 70,65m, edging Sandra Perkovic’s seasonal best of 70,08m.

 

Did you expect to throw a world leading mark and go beyond the 70m mark?

Denia Caballero: No, I did not expect to throw that far and be at the top of the world rankings. But it is what every athlete wants and I wished for it with all my soul. I thought this would be my competition. During training sessions, we do not measure how far we throw. Rather, we keep  an eye on the technique.

What will your next competition be? Any planned before the World Championships?

Denia Caballero: Today I will compete at the IAAF Diamond League meeting in Lausanne. After that, I will head over to Toronto to compete at the Pan American Games.

When did you start throwing, how far have you thrown every season?

Denia Caballero: I started throwing the discus at the age of 15 years. And since 2007 my progression was the following:

2007 46,08m (17 years old)
2008 52,10m
2009 57,21m
2010 59,92m
2011 62,94m
2012 65,60m
2013 63,47m
2014 64,89m
2015 70,65m

 

Who is your technical model?

Denia Caballero: My technical role model is the Polish discus thrower, Piotr Malachowski.

 

Who is your coach?

Denia Caballero:  My coach is Raul Calder.

 

Who is in your training squad?

Denia Caballero: I’m training with Yarelis Barrios (68,03m) and Jorge Fernández (66,50m)

 

What do you need to work on, improve?

Denia Caballero: I need to improve the coordination in the second part of the rotation.

 

What weight lifting exercises will you do?

Denia Caballero: During my weightlifting sessions I do some jerks, squats, cleans and half-squats.

 

Did you try anything new the past off-season in order to improve your personal best?

Denia Caballero: I have not tried anything new during the off-season. I have endeavored to improve technically. I’m an athlete who thinks that a good technique will lead to good results eventually.

 

What is your goal for the World Championships in Beijing, China?

Denia Caballero: The goal for the upcoming World Championships would be to get a medal. I does not matter which of the three. I will try my best and see what this will be enough for.

 

Are you afraid of Sandra Perkovic or do you think you can beat her in Beijing?

Denia Caballero: I’m not afraid of Sandra. She is a good competitive athlete, but everyone has a bad day at some point. And I will then be ready. One cannot predict precisely beforehand. We will see what will happen in Beijing.

 

What will you do to relax?

In order to relax and keep me calm I will just take a deep breath and think of my mum.