Manhattan High is home to many things and many students. Rarely do those things or students land at the top of a national list, or even draw national attention.

However, junior Sam Hankins currently holds the furthest javelin throw in the nation for his grade, and third overall, with a throw of 210-10 which he achieved at the Seaman Relays, according to milesplit, a website that tracks nationwide track and field results.

Hankins has been acquiring national attention since his freshman year, as he continues to out-throw every upperclassmen in the state and nearly the nation.

Despite being one of the top throwers in the nation, Hankins is not satisfied with anything short of the best.

“It feels amazing to have one of those top throws but to me personally, that was not a good throw,” Hankins said. “I have had a good throw this season. 210 is hard to get but in my personal opinion I could be pushing 230, 235 feet at this point.”

If Hankins did achieve a throw of 230 feet, it would beat out the current top throw in the nation by 14 feet. The current top throw in the nation is held by senior Ty Hampton from Oregon with a throw of 216-10. The top throw in the nation was also the first and only throw of Hampton’s above 200 feet this season, while Hankins has not thrown short of 200 feet this season.  Hankins has proven that throwing further is within his reach, as his personal best is a throw of 220-09, which also holds the school record.

“I feel like I figured some form stuff out I feel like I’m ready to start cranking it up this year, especially with league, regionals and state coming up,” Hankins said. “I’ve been pretty consistent this year but I’m really ready to start popping off and throwing some big throws.”

While Hankins is one of the best, he, just like most athletes, still needs some help from his coaches, even if it is less help than others need.

“[Hankins] makes [coaching a national star] easy,” MHS javelin coach Ryan Small said. “[Hankins] has been around [this sport] more than most coaches in the world. He can analyze himself and he mostly coaches himself. Experience, talent and the will to get better are all things that keep making [Hankins] better.”

Hankins will compete next on Friday at the Salina Relays, where he fully intends to take back the honor of holding the highest throw in the nation among all grades of high schoolers.