Like daughter, like mother: Beard family throwing the distance in track and field

Donna Beard, 60, resides in Mukilteo, but she makes her presence known at several national and international track and field meets throughout the year.

Setting new records and topping previous personal bests along the way are also not uncommon for the mother of two track and field champions, Tim and Kimberly.

On Aug. 3, Beard snagged a first-place title in the women throws pentathlon — which includes hammer throw, shot put, discus throw, javelin throw and weight throw — at the Greyhounds Combined Events meet in Coquitlam, British Columbia. Competing in the Masters division, she not only finished with a total of 4,377 points, which was more than 1,350 points above the second-place finisher and more than 200 points above the previous record held by Carol Finsrud since 2017, Beard also earned personal bests in the hammer (146-8), shot put (36) and weight (48-6).

At the 27th-annual Washington State Senior Games in Tumwater in late-July, Beard posted six first-place and two second-place finishes in the 60-64 age division, claiming titles in discus, shot put, javelin, hammer, weight and 1,500 race walk.

“It’s just one event at a time, focusing on that, doing your best on that and then walking on, preparing for the next one,” Beard said. “It was kind of nerve-wracking because you have to be on and not get into foul trouble. Last year, I would foul more than I would get a mark. I think I would foul two and maybe get one half a throw in. There’s just been a lot more time put in, more focus put in, and then it results in increasing my form, so that’s helped build confidence in that.”

Beard’s accomplishments arrive weeks after Kimberly, who’s entering her junior year this fall at King’s High School, placed second in hammer at the 2024 USA Track & Field U20 Championships on June 12 in Eugene, Oregon. That same weekend, Kimberly found herself on another podium as the runner-up in the same event at the 2024 Nike Outdoor Nationals. On July 24, Kimberly finally reached the top with a first-place finish in hammer at the USA Track & Field National Junior Olympic Championships. All those accolades are just a few months after placing first at the Emerald Sound Championships, second at the Class 1A District 1/2 Championships and fourth at the Class 1B, 2B, and 1A State Championships.

Beard was the full-time track and field coach at Northshore Christian Academy and part time at King’s but switched over solely to King’s last year to help train the Knights and watch her daughter.

“I think (it’s) consistency and practicing because I see that in the athletes that succeed. They’re the ones that’ll stay the extra 15 minutes or the ones that will come early or the ones (who say), ‘Can I do this on Saturday? Can I rent out a discus? What kind of shoes do I need?’” said Beard about what she sees in certain athletes aspiring to reach the next level. “I see that in my daughter. She works outside of the school time and puts that in, and it pays off.”

What’s next for Beard and her future travels across the state, nation and world before 2024 concludes?

After visiting Sacramento, Calif. this July for the USA Track and Field Masters Outdoors Championships and the Florida Senior Games in Tampa, Fla., Nevada Senior Games in Las Vegas and Canadian Masters Athletics Outdoor Championships in Langley, B.C. last year to name a few, Beard said she’ll be preparing for the Montana Senior Olympics in September and again the Nevada Senior Games in the beginning of October. Also on her list are the Huntsman World Senior Games in Utah in October and the 2025 World Masters Indoor Championships in Florida next March.

“At my level, it’s not as heavily competitive. There’s about nine women I think, some of who are in different age groups, so it wasn’t like I had to beat anybody there,” said Beard about her mindset at the meet in British Columbia. “I was just looking for what I was doing. … I didn’t say I had to be personal records on everything, just be solid and be consistent.”