University of Nevada Las Vegas

Women’s Track & Field Athlete (2009-12)

Having moved to Las Vegas as a youngster, Silverado High School graduate Amanda Bingson was convinced by her mother to walk-on to the hometown Rebels. Good move. While she had not thrown the hammer until reaching a college campus, she thrived in her new discipline and did not leave before becoming the greatest thrower in the history of the program. In 2009, she came in fifth place at the Mountain West meet in Wyoming. It would be the last time she did not win the event at the annual get-together. As a sophomore she led the second-place finisher in New Mexico by 15 feet. The following spring in Colorado the difference grew to 18 feet. As a senior she became a three-time champ in grander style, winning the event by an eye-popping 30 feet. Not just an event champ, Bingson became the first athlete in Mountain West history to earn Most Outstanding Performance three times in a career. Her throw of 233 feet in Austin, Texas, on May 24, 2012, remains the conference and school record. Bingson won her first of three All-America honors in 2011 by finishing fourth at the NCAAs. One year later she improved that finish to third nationally outdoors after also earning an indoor All-America nod in the weight throw. She moved from collegiate star to national sensation with a second-place showing at the U.S. Olympic Trials held at Nike’s World Headquarters in Oregon. Her stunner of a throw (a personal-best 235 feet, 6 inches) earned her an-earlier-than expected spot on Team USA and allowed her to represent her country at the London Games, where she finished 28th. Turning pro after graduation she competed around the globe and in 2013 Bingson set the U.S. record with a throw of 248 feet, 5 inches. In 2016 she was an alternate for the next Olympic Games after finishing fourth at the trials. Bingson gained further fame by being featured in the annual ESPN Magazine The Body Issue, which thrust her into becoming a high-profile advocate for body positivity for women.