Charleston, SC native, Burke High School alumni and Olympian, Raven Saunders has plenty to celebrate this summer. Saunders competed in the U.S. Track and Field outdoor championships in Sacramento, CA and her performance was stellar. She unleashed a winning throw in the final round of the shot-put competition, earning her a chance to compete in London this August.

Raven broke her own personal-best record by throwing 64 feet, 10 inches, taking the first place medal and beating 2016 gold medalist, Michelle Carter. Not only did Raven surpass her own record, but her throw became the world’s best throw this year, and the fourth-best in the history of the United States.  This dynamic record merely compliments Raven’s four NCAA titles and her 5th place Olympic finish in Rio de Janeiro in 2016.

Raven will go on to advance to the 2017 USA Shot Put Champion for the USA World Championship Team in London this August.

<blockquote class=”instagram-media” data-instgrm-captioned data-instgrm-version=”7″ style=” background:#FFF; border:0; border-radius:3px; box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width:658px; padding:0; width:99.375%; width:-webkit-calc(100% – 2px); width:calc(100% – 2px);”><div style=”padding:8px;”> <div style=” background:#F8F8F8; line-height:0; margin-top:40px; padding:50.0% 0; text-align:center; width:100%;”> <div style=” background:url(data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAACwAAAAsCAMAAAApWqozAAAABGdBTUEAALGPC/xhBQAAAAFzUkdCAK7OHOkAAAAMUExURczMzPf399fX1+bm5mzY9AMAAADiSURBVDjLvZXbEsMgCES5/P8/t9FuRVCRmU73JWlzosgSIIZURCjo/ad+EQJJB4Hv8BFt+IDpQoCx1wjOSBFhh2XssxEIYn3ulI/6MNReE07UIWJEv8UEOWDS88LY97kqyTliJKKtuYBbruAyVh5wOHiXmpi5we58Ek028czwyuQdLKPG1Bkb4NnM+VeAnfHqn1k4+GPT6uGQcvu2h2OVuIf/gWUFyy8OWEpdyZSa3aVCqpVoVvzZZ2VTnn2wU8qzVjDDetO90GSy9mVLqtgYSy231MxrY6I2gGqjrTY0L8fxCxfCBbhWrsYYAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC); display:block; height:44px; margin:0 auto -44px; position:relative; top:-22px; width:44px;”></div></div> <p style=” margin:8px 0 0 0; padding:0 4px;”> <a href=”https://www.instagram.com/p/BVvNJFYArtn/” style=” color:#000; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:normal; line-height:17px; text-decoration:none; word-wrap:break-word;” target=”_blank”>2 weeks ago took an L but this week I bounced back. Happy to say I&#39;m the 2017 USA Shot Put Champion and qualified for the USA World Championship Team in London. Man this year has had sooo many ups and downs, but I&#39;m back. #Monster #beast #Usa #tracknation #throwernation #usachampion #london #london2017 #hulk #hulksmash #olemiss #rebels #southcarolina #charleston #monsterenergy</a></p> <p style=” color:#c9c8cd; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; line-height:17px; margin-bottom:0; margin-top:8px; overflow:hidden; padding:8px 0 7px; text-align:center; text-overflow:ellipsis; white-space:nowrap;”>A post shared by Raven Hulk Saunders (@giveme1shot__) on <time style=” font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; line-height:17px;” datetime=”2017-06-24T21:34:40+00:00″>Jun 24, 2017 at 2:34pm PDT</time></p></div></blockquote>
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