How CSU's Gabi McDonald overcame imposter syndrome to become one of nation's top throwers
Fearless aggression has always been her greatest tool.
As a soccer goalkeeper, Gabi McDonald could go flying into challenges with strikers, knowing her mindset and athleticism would likely lead to a successful outcome.
It worked in basketball, too, which was just one of her side sports at Rocky Mountain High School.
But throwing? Well, McDonald considered herself a soccer player who competed in track and field.
She did it with dominance (five total state titles in the throws at Rocky Mountain) and signed to CSU to compete in both soccer and track.
When her soccer career ended (she was last on CSU’s roster for the COVID-shortened 2021 season), she found herself in a new spot.
For the first time in her life, McDonald was competing in just one sport. The problem was she felt she didn’t belong despite her marks being some of the best in the region.
“I felt like a soccer player who’s like, ‘Why am I in this flight with these big throwers?’” McDonald said. “That freaked me out last year.”
The imposter syndrome culminated with what she calls “the worst meet of my life.” CSU track and field coach Brian Bedard called it a “disaster.”
McDonald scratched on all three shot put attempts and two of three discus throws at the 2022 NCAA regionals to see her season end in catastrophe, in a sporting sense.
It led to a long journey of soul-searching to find how she could best go after this sport. She had to find out how to eliminate the negative, intrusive thoughts that can derail performance and learn how to best attack this challenge that has now become her sole sporting endeavor.
She’s done it masterfully, combining consistency in training with a fine-tuned mindset of how to channel her attack mode into the throwing ring.
“This year was figuring out how to compete fearlessly and brave and not be so in your head and not worried about anything. Let it fly, essentially,” McDonald said.
Fly, indeed.
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McDonald qualified for this week’s NCAA championships in both shot put and discus, the latter becoming arguably her staple event. She’s in CSU's top-five all-time in outdoor marks in each, and her top discus mark (196 feet) is fifth in the NCAA this season.
She’ll throw shot put Thursday night and discus Saturday night at the championships in Austin, Texas.
“Now when I’m in those top flights, I no longer feel like an imposter,” McDonald said ahead of her first appearance in the finals. “This year it’s been like a way different mindset of knowing I belong.”
At the Mountain West meet (where McDonald swept titles in the throws), Bedard held her up as someone for other members of the team to talk with about how to overcome the mental difficulty of succeeding at this level.
“This lady has cracked the code,” he told them. “She’s done a really nice job of freeing herself up from that type of thinking … She had an awful NCAA first round last year. It was a disaster. She vowed to not let that happen again.”
McDonald will marry fellow CSU track athlete Jackson Morris — who will compete in nationals in the javelin — in September, and he's not only a training partner, but she credits him with instilling belief when she didn’t feel it herself.
Another side effect of her multi-sport start to her college career means McDonald still feels like she’s just scratching the surface of her potential despite being a fifth-year athlete.
Year 1 was dedicated to soccer. Years 2 and 3 were derailed by a significant knee surgery and then COVID. She still has two indoor seasons and one outdoor season of eligibility remaining after this one.
The NCAA championships this week could be a showcase but also far from the finished product.
“I feel like I’m pretty young on the throwing side of it,” McDonald said. “I think I’m just getting started.”
CSU athletes at NCAA championships
Jackson Morris: Javelin (4:30 p.m. Wednesday)
Gabi McDonald: Shot put (8:30 p.m. Thursday) and discus (6:35 p.m. Saturday)
Mya Lesnar: Shot put (8:30 p.m. Thursday)
Allam Bushara: Triple jump (7:10 p.m. Friday)
Sarah Carter: 5,000-meter run (8:55 p.m. Saturday)
Klaire Kovatch: Discus (6:35 p.m. Saturday)
*Each event can be watched online on ESPN+
Note: Annabel Stanford qualified for the 10,000-meter run but will scratch due to medical reasons, according to CSURams.com.
Follow sports reporter Kevin Lytle on Twitter and Instagram @Kevin_Lytle.
This article originally appeared on Fort Collins Coloradoan: How Fort Collins' own Gabi McDonald became one of nation's top throwers
