Last Updated on July 13, 2022 3:52 pm
LINVILLE, N.C. – Jonathan Harding finished first in three of the seven men’s heavy athletic events during the 2022 Grandfather Mountain Highland Games, earning him the top spot overall for the competition. While he has competed at these games before, this was his first year doing so as a pro.
The 34-year-old from Austinville, Va., is a high school English teacher at Pulaski County High School and has been doing heavy athletics for six years.
“My parents took me to the Ligonier Highland Games near Pittsburgh as a child,” Harding said when explaining how he got into the sport. “I think I was 7, and I saw the guys throwing a rock and I wanted to try it. So, later on, I tried it and stuck with it.”
Harding won the hammer throw, as well as the light weight for distance and the heavy weight for distance. The last of these entails throwing a 56-pound weight and is his favorite event to practice because it “lets you know immediately if you are doing something wrong, and I’m good at it.”
Saturday saw an exceptionally large crowd of spectators, and Harding spoke about the atmosphere of competing as this venue.
“I like that there is a track here and actual track events,” he said. “It’s cool that there are other athletes and games here. It’s a beautiful setting and one of the least-hot places to compete in mid-July.”
Garrett Blatnik was this year’s runner-up, winning both the 56-pound-weight toss for height and the sheaf events. Wes Kiser secured the third-place finish overall.
The men’s professional competition is by invitation only and featured six competitors vying to best each other in seven different categories: sheaf toss, 56-pound-weight toss for height, caber toss, clachneart, heavy weight (56 pounds) throw for distance, light weight (28 pounds) throw for distance and the hammer.
The 2022 Grandfather Mountain Highland Games took place July 7-10 at Grandfather Mountain’s MacRae Meadows in Linville, N.C. To learn more about the Highland Games, visit www.gmhg.org.
The nonprofit Grandfather Mountain Stewardship Foundation strives to inspire conservation of the natural world by helping guests explore, understand and value the wonders of Grandfather Mountain. For more information, visit www.grandfather.com.
Jonathan Harding competes in the 56-pound-weight toss for height at the 2022 Grandfather Mountain Highland Games. He took the top spot overall for the competition in his first year competing as a pro at these games. (Photo Courtesy of Grandfather Mountain Stewardship Foundation / Skip Sickler)
Garrett Blatnik competes during the 2022 Grandfather Mountain Highland Games. He was this year’s runner-up, winning both the 56-pound-weight toss for height and the sheaf events. (Photo Courtesy of Grandfather Mountain Stewardship Foundation / Skip Sickler)
Wes Kiser competes during the 2022 Grandfather Mountain Highland Games. He secured the third-place finish overall. (Photo Courtesy of Grandfather Mountain Stewardship Foundation / Skip Sickler)
