Borrman Writing Her Own Fairy Tale
The product of Hall of Famers hammering her own path
Mike Brohard
One person tells the story with conviction. With absolute certainty.
Two others in attendance – including the accused – don’t recall the alleged incident at all. But Kajsa Borrman spins a convincing tale all these years later. As if it were just yesterday when it happened.
“The Bedard family barbeque. We used to go as a family yearly, probably many times a year,” is how her testimony begins. “I’m just there, minding my own business. I’m 7, he walks over and thought it would be funny – lemonade all over my nice little polka-dot dress. He might not remember it, but I definitely remember it and I’m not going to let it go.”
The he in question would be Brian Bedard, her current coach at Colorado State.
Her mother has no recollection of the event. But she does remember some details.
“I do not remember that. I remember the polka-dot dress, but I don’t remember lemonade spilled on the dress,” Shelly Borrman said. “And she was 4. Knowing Brian, if it happened, it was on purpose.”
Being the mom she is, she produces a photo of the dress and the barbeque in question. No lemonade stain.
Bedard, naturally, does not recall “The Spill.” Then again, he’s not exactly a convincing witness. Besides, there’s also the incident a few years later at CSU women’s basketball game where he playfully pushed Kajsa, and she nearly fell down the stairs.
He doesn’t deny that, and he felt horrible when the youngster almost tipped over.
“I don’t remember the lemonade ever happening,” he said. “It probably did.”
The tales put everything occurring now into perspective. The relationship between the families – Bedard was a groomsman at Mattias’ and Shelly’s wedding. The relationship between the coach and current student-athlete. It made Kajsa possibly the easiest recruit in Bedard’s career to sign.
She speaks of her parents with reverence, but without bravado, until pressed to do so. To her, she is simply a legacy kid. The truth, she is the offspring of throwing royalty. There are two husband-wife combinations in the Colorado State Athletic Hall of Fame. One is Bedard and his wife, Jill. The others are Mattias and Shelly Borrman.
Mattias, the seven-time NCAA qualifier who still ranks top 10 in a trio of throws at Colorado State, ranking second still in both the hammer and the javelin. The 1996 WAC high-point award winner, he was the Nye Award recipient in 1996 as the universities top male athlete. He was also a four-time national champion in Sweden. Heck, he’s still throwing, competing unattached at a meet earlier this year. And because of him, Kajsa has dual citizenship and has competed internationally and will return this summer to compete in the U-23 European Championships.
Shelly, the five-time first-team All-American and the 1999 national runner-up in the discus, making her the program’s most decorated female. She won three conference titles, ranks third all-time in the discus and 15th in the hammer. She won the Frank Award as CSU’s top female athlete in 1999 and twice was named the department’s top female-scholar athlete (the Mencimer Award, 1998-99).
“Yes, the King and Queen. They met here,” Kajsa said. “Mom, a five-time All-American, too many to count. My dad was super successful and had every record here at the same time, really good all-around athlete. Both of them are super involved and coached me, and I’ve been around Bedard my whole life. I was kind of born and raised at CSU.”
Which would make her, by blood, Princess Kajsa.
“I like to think so,” she said with a smile.
“I’m sure she’ll want it to stick,” said her roommate, Klaire Kovatch. “I’m not calling her that.”
Coming to Colorado State was going to mean joining a program with outside eyes having big expectations for her based off the bloodline. It can be intimidating should the child choose to view it in such a manner.
Kajsa approached from an altered vantage point.
“Some people say they can’t imagine going to the same place and doing what my parents did. I love it,” she said. “They had a great time; they talk about it all the time. That’s what I want to have when I’m older. I want to have those experiences and memories too. I’m living it right now, and it’s the best ever.”
I’ve always said it about Brian: He is the best throws coach in the country. He takes good character kids and he creates amazing throwers and amazing people out of them. I’m so grateful he is helping to do that with Kajsa. It’s a cool relationship to see, even it’s a bit cringy for both of them.Shelly Borrman
In her mind, though she admits to “flirting” with other schools, she was going to be a Ram and fulfill the dream she carried since she was 7-years old. You don’t grow up attending women’s basketball games and volleyball games with your parents and cheering on a school without gaining an affinity. You don’t listen to them talk with fondness about a school, a program, without being influenced.
Bedard made that a reality for her with a phone call to make his intent clear the first day he could, while she was in the midst of winning three consecutive 5A state titles in the discus for Loveland High School.
“It made the most sense, I suppose. Just being able to watch her grow up,” Bedard said. “I kinda knew what I was getting. I really wanted to commit to her early, so her junior year we fast-tracked the recruiting. Her senior year she was banged up, so she didn’t improve a whole lot, and to be honest, I wondered if she was going to be as good as I thought she would be.
“After working with her he redshirt year, I knew she was going to be pretty good. She’s throwing 67 meters and is one of the top hammer throwers in the country. Then she struggled in competition a bit and fouled out of some meets. I think she’s cracked the code and figured out how to compete at this level. Still looking for consistency.”
The familiarity between the families made it all feel so natural. As parents, they wanted the best for their child. As successful throwers, they wanted the same.
Again, Colorado State was not just the answer, it was the only one.
The relationship only goes so far. As Shelly remembers, during the official recruiting visit, she said she was even a bit scared because Bedard laid down the law for his expectations and the work which would be required.
He is a man who has coached his daughter, Kelsey, to All-American results, in both the discus and hammer. That dynamic was different for them both and went through stages. Same with Kajsa. He said it’s like coaching a relative, one where there’s been a playful nature through the years.
He’s somebody who may – or may not – spill lemonade on a little girl. Kajsa is definitely someone who isn’t afraid to speak up for herself in any situation.
“I mean, her first year she was talking back. My first year, I was no way I’ll be talking back,” Kovatch said. “It will be yes sir. He says jump, I say, ‘how high.’ There was none of that, no, incorrect coach. Part of it is she grew up in the throwing community more than I did. Coming here, I had so much to learn, where she had already been exposed to the collegiate throwing world. There is definitely a different dynamic. She’s more like a daughter.”
Both Bedard and Kajsa said the relationship at practice has toned down through the years. She’s always understood he’s the coach, and as she’s matured, she’s gained the understanding that their past relationship should not always extend to practices.
It has not hurt Mattias is now a volunteer assistant throws coach – a role both Bedard and Kajsa try to take credit for initiating. But Shelly sees their history as a reason for her daughter’s current success.
“She does so much better when she’s comfortable. She has said some things to Bedard which have made me cringe, and I wondered why her teammates hadn’t put her in her place,” Shelly said. “At the same time, there are times when that’s good for him, too. The relationship they have is special in its own right. It’s really cool for me to see it and watch it from afar, also.
“I’ve always said it about Brian: He is the best throws coach in the country. He takes good character kids and he creates amazing throwers and amazing people out of them. I’m so grateful he is helping to do that with Kajsa. It’s a cool relationship to see, even it’s a bit cringy for both of them.”
The words they’ve exchanged may have raised an eyebrow or two at times from other throwers, but Kovatch feels they all had an understanding as Bedard explained who the new kid was before she arrived.
It helped on multiple fronts. As Kovatch explained, Kajsa’s arrival came with some future expectations based on a better understanding of the past. All a sudden, the old names on the record board started to carry more weight. Heck, it wasn’t until three years ago when Jackson Morris took the javelin record from Mattias.
Not only was Kajsa around, but they all were. Mattias as a coach, Shelly as their biggest supporter.
“Mattias and Shelly have definitely shown a lot of generosity toward me. I have come to know them because I’m Kajsa’s roommate as well,” Kovatch said. “I’ve spent more time with them, had Easter with her grandparents and family. That stuff is special to me because I don’t have my family here. I thought I’d be on my own here, and I’m not. I know if I called Mattias and said I have a flat tire, he’d help if he’s not traveling for work. I think it’s great that any time anyone’s family is at a meet and cheers people on, it’s cool to see.”
Especially people who have played a significant role in building the culture and highlighting awareness of what throwers at Colorado State can accomplish. It does come with expectations, however.
Even Kovatch said the team was wondering if they were getting the “next Shelly Borrman.” Shelly didn’t want that for Kajsa, nor did Kajsa want that for herself. Chasing mom’s records was going to be an honor in her mind, but as it turns out her story very well could be one all of her own making.
Which they all like.
There are very few chances to throw the hammer growing up. It’s not found at most high school competitions. Bedard puts all of his recruits through the motion, knowing hammer throwers are sometimes found by accident. Some throwers just develop a feeling for a throw which requires speed and patience.
I’m glad I get to experience this with them. Not that they get to live vicariously through me, because they already did that and they’re happy with their lives and letting me do my own thing.Kajsa Borrman
Then again, not all recruits grow up in the Borrman household.
“I got my first hammer when I was in eighth grade for Christmas, and I was really excited about it,” Kajsa said. “We came and did some blinds, and there’s a post of me circulating out there doing some ones that you shouldn’t watch. I was 14. It looks different than it looks now. I competed in one meet, and I won – out of me and one other girl. Maybe that’s where my love for hammer really started. Who knows?”
Kajsa’s discus hasn’t taken off the way some people might have envisioned – she still ranks in the top 20 at the school with time to develop – but early on, they all saw talent. That, and the fact Bedard’s throws stable was stocked her first season, was a reason she redshirted out of the gates.
In her first official collegiate competition, she competed in the hammer and blew by mom’s best throw. It was Shelly who texted first, asking her daughter if she’d realized what she’d done. Kajsa was clueless.
Bedard saw major potential.
“It was pretty early on. I saw a patience there and understanding,” he said. “I saw it with Kelcey, too. Some folks, they are good enough athletes where they can muddle through and score you some points, but it will never be their highlight event. In the hammer, your learning and feel for the event has to move to a higher level to make the next jump. You can get a decent athlete to a certain level, but to get to the next level, it needs a better feel, better kinesthetic awareness of the event that some athletes aren’t capable of reaching.
“I think it’s good her best event is the hammer and she’s already past mom. That alleviates all that. I said you’re probably not getting mom’s discus mark, but then she made good progress, but I still don’t know if she’ll throw at that level. I think she’s comfortable with herself and where she’s at.”
Which is in a good place. She’s not just royalty by blood anymore, she earned her crown jewels all on her own when she won the Mountain West Indoor Championships in the weight throw in February.
She enters the outdoor championships this week in Fresno, Calif., with the top conference mark in the event, her throw of 220 feet, 8 inches ranking 11th nationally and sitting second in school history.
“It was kind of a surprise. I’m not your typical hammer-thrower build,” Kajsa said. “It didn’t click at first. I really had to keep working at it, and I was convinced I was going to be a discus thrower when I came here. All the sudden, after a little fall work in the hammer in the indoor season and the weight, I was successful. I just understood it. It felt really natural to me, but I definitely had to put in some work and I’m still working on it now. I’ve improved five or six meters from where I first started, but that doesn’t mean I’m done.
“There was a lot of talk about me beating my mom in discus, and I was a little scared about that. Then we discovered everybody has different strengths. My first year I actually crushed her hammer mark, so maybe I’m more of a hammer person. She can have her thing, and I can have mine, and we can both have great legacies at CSU. I’m grateful she has paved the way and given people confidence in me that I can do some of the things she’s done, which has really helped me out.”
The best part is the historical chapter of Bedard and the Borrman family is not yet finished. He figures on their wedding day he put dibs on their firstborn, but that didn’t happen as their son, Jakob, became a good swimmer. The only issue is he went to the “other school.” Not entirely his fault, as CSU wasn’t an option, and he did become a conference placer for Wyoming.
Even still, Kajsa said it was on her to save the family name by attending Colorado State. The only place she wanted to be, influenced by the people who matter to her most. That includes her brother, who she credits with building some of her competitiveness. When attending his meets, she would don brown and yellow – “bad colors” – and he will put on CSU gear when at her meets. It’s the support, more than her parent’s throwing history, which she cherishes most.
“I would not want to be in a different family. I love being in an athletic family because we share a lot of memories, and there’s just support all around,” she said. “I’m glad I get to experience this with them. Not that they get to live vicariously through me, because they already did that and they’re happy with their lives and letting me do my own thing. They’ve always been the most supportive and loving parents I could ever ask for.”
Parents who have a story so beautiful to her she wanted to experience it herself firsthand. Attend their school. Wear their uniform. Stand in the same circles, trained by the same man who had such a positive impact on their life.
The kind of story a little girl in a polka dot dress reads and never forgets.
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