Axed and answered

Ask champions how they become champions, and you’ll get a blend of responses that ultimately lead to some variation on the importance of practice.

Malcolm Gladwell’s book “Outliers” details how, to be truly great, one must put no less than 10,000 hours into a craft.

Russell Wilson’s now famous line, “The separation is in the preparation,” traces back to his painstakingly rigid habits.

Miguel Tamburini of Post Falls is cut from the same cloth, and he has the blades to prove it.

“It wasn’t until 2019 when I started taking it seriously,” Tamburini said. “That’s when I started with a thousand throws a day.”

Tamburini, originally from Caracas, Venezuela, has spent the past year-plus refining his craft of ax throwing, a skill that — thanks in no small part to his practice regimen — has catapulted him to the very top of the rankings. He threw a record-breaking 1,656-point score last winter in the World Axe Throwing League, giving him the crown as the No. 1 ax thrower in the world.

“I went through a long learning curve,” he said. “I’m 36 years old. I’m not naive. When I’m learning a new skill, I know it takes a lot of practice.”

While Tamburini has the score to back up his skill, he will travel to Atlanta and try for the trophy at the 2020 Signorama World Axe Throwing Championship on Dec. 6. The winner from the pool of 128 competitive throwers across 23 countries will receive $25,000 and be crowned the world champion.

“I’m very excited for this,” he told The Press.

Tamburini said ax throwing is not the do-or-die arena that squeezes the fun out of the sport.

"The ax-throwing community is very welcoming. There’s a real sense of community, particularly because there’s no judgment. There are some sports, like golf, where you could become very good, but you are judged if you don’t own an expensive set of clubs," he said. "It’s not like that here.”

Tamburini came to America from Caracas in 2013, as the death of Hugo Chavez sparked the sudden collapse of Venezuela’s economy. With more than 1,000-percent inflation since 2013, widespread government corruption and continued sanctions against the country, the Post Falls resident hopes to one day return to introduce ax throwing to the struggling country of his birth.

“I just came here to visit, originally,” he said. “I’m lucky enough that my father is from Nashville, Tenn. But I just heard that the first (ax throwing) venue has opened in Venezuela. So there’s hope.”

That adventure then took him to the Inland Northwest to join his business partner after the latter’s daughter was accepted to Washington State University.

“I love it here," Tamburini said.

Tamburini emphasized that his success throwing the ax has not come easy. Aside from the thousand throws per day, he also credits the help he sought from a sports psychologist, Riley Tincher of Oklahoma.

“I realized I was throwing very well in practice,” Tamburini said, “but I was falling apart in competition.”

Tamburini’s quick ascension has caught the eyes of the ax-throwing world. He is routinely flown from state to state — including this coming weekend in Wyoming — to help with coaching techniques.

The pandemic has closed Tamburini’s usual practice venue, Jumping Jackalope Axe Throwing in Spokane, after the most recent surge in COVID-19 cases led Washington Gov. Jay Inslee to re-instate new restrictions this week. But Tamburini said he’s found a new, temporary home, managing Hank’s Hatchets in Coeur d’Alene, starting today.

“The owner and I share the same passion of growing the sport here in the area,” Tamburini said.

The 2020 Signorama World Axe Throwing Championship on Dec. 6 will be broadcast on ESPN2.