Iowa junior thrower Quintin Lyons ended his 2022 outdoor season with a 13th-place finish in the shot put at the Big Ten Outdoor Track and Field Championships. Four months later, he was in emergency surgery questioning if he would ever throw again.

Unsatisfied with the outdoor season finish, the Van Nuys, California, native made the commitment to stay in Iowa City over the summer to work toward his goals of breaking the Iowa shot put record and making a national championship in the upcoming indoor season.

Then the stomach pains started.

Lyons had experienced the pains before, but these became so unbearable that he had to go to the emergency room. After time dragged on while he waited to hear his diagnosis, he was told he needed to go into emergency surgery.

His appendix had burst, and the fluid was spreading into his intestines, risking infection and even death if not treated. The operation would require surgeons to cut through his abdominal wall to clear it.

“Knowing the manner they were going to cut him open and the degree at that point, I wasn’t concerned about Quintin the athlete; I was concerned about Quintin the person and him being able to survive because that’s how scary it was,” Iowa throws coach Ray Robinson said.

Although the surgery was successful, Lyons spent the next two months sidelined, as there were fluid drains hooked up to his body that made it uncomfortable to sit or lay down. He lost more than 50 pounds.

But Lyons’ love for throwing only grew. He was as determined as ever to get back out and compete, to build off his outdoor season successes and be even better.

“It was really rough,” Lyons said. “My mentality wavered a lot. I didn’t think I would compete again … But I personally think it was one of the greatest things that can happen for my athletic career.”

His first focus was on his diet so he could regain lost weight in a healthy way. Once cleared to return to physical activity, Lyons took it slow, focusing on his movement and his body before gradually returning to weightlifting.

But because NCAA rules would not allow Iowa coaches to instruct Lyons, he had to practice throwing on his own. A few weeks in, he decided to go out and work on his shot put for the first time.

“It was probably the worst [I’ve thrown] throughout my entire life,” Lyons said. “I was like, ‘OK, this is going to be a little rough,’… but I felt something in me that I didn’t really feel before, so that really got me amped up.”

Just a week and a half into Lyons’ return to training with the team, he was set to make his return to competitive throwing for the Hawkeyes at the Hawkeye Invite on Jan. 14. His nerves were at an all-time high, but his mind didn’t expect a massive throw. Instead, he wanted to break some of the bad habits he had picked up while training individually.

He threw a 16.01-meter toss in the shot put for third, but he was unsatisfied. The motto guiding him, crafted by Robinson, became “post-operation personal record” — an abandonment of any throws he had before his surgery, and a focus on his performances from there on out.

“Our very first meet was an impressive performance because of what he had come back from. The fact that he was even out there doing it, but for him, it wasn’t a good performance,” Robinson said. “But we were excited because he was back.”

And almost every meet after, Lyons reached a new post-op PR — 16.51 meters at the Larry Wieczorek Invitational, 16.72 meters at the ISU classic, culminating in a season-best 17.51-meter toss at the 2023 Big Ten Indoor Championships for 13th place.

At the Desert Heat Classic on April 29, Lyons broke the string of post-op PRs when he tied his career-best with a 17.57-meter toss.

Robinson wants Lyons to keep progressing his shot put, throw over 18 meters, make a Big Ten final, and qualify for the NCAA meet this outdoor season.

But he also wants him to progress as a leader.

“Honestly, it inspired the hell out of our group,” Robinson said. “You see someone that goes from literally dying, and he doesn’t complain at all. He never complains about what we eat, what gear we get, where we go to throw — never complains about anything, and if he doesn’t complain about his situation, what gives anyone else the right?”

Now feeling healthier and moving quicker, Lyons has not lost sight of the school record and national championship.

To other athletes going through something similar, his advice is to stay patient.

“Don’t be in such a hurry to get back because it’s such a slow process,” Lyons said. “But you [have] got to really trust in the process because if you trust in the process, results will come in the long run.”