Former resident will compete in Olympics

A former Tucumcari resident will take to the world's stage once again as she competes in the 2012 Olympics in London.

Courtesy photo

Amber Campbell, who lived in Tucumcari from 1983 to 1995, competed in volleyball, basketball and track and field at Tucumcari Middle School. Campbell will once again compete in the Olympics.

Amber Campbell was preparing to compete in the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, China, where she finished 21st in the women's hammer throw with a mark of 222 feet.

The women's hammer is a 4 kilogram (8.8 lbs) steel ball on a 4-foot long wire attached to a metal handle. The athlete tries to throw it as far as he or she can.

Going into Beijing, Campbell's personal record is 70.33 m or 230-6 — a mark she surpassed on June 21 when she qualified for the 2012 Olympics with a throw of 235-6.

Campbell won the Olympic trials, held in Beaverton, Org.

Campbell lived in Tucumcari from 1983 to 1995, and competed in volleyball, basketball and track and field at Tucumcari Middle School. She said her time in tucumcari helped spark her love for athletics.

An interview with Campbell is planned for later this week and will be in the next edition of the Quay County Sun.