Another Olympic track medal. How realistic is it for us to expect one in London next year based on results from the just-concluded World Athletics Championships in South Korea?
Pretty tough, I surmise, but not impossible.
Despite his failure in Daegu, hurdler Ryan Brathwaite still seems to be our brightest hope.
And whereas last week I was wondering what might have been some of the reasons for his poor form this season, this time I am not because he blamed it on injuries.
I can accept that, but it may have been better not to compete at all than to risk further injuries or to look sub-standard in an event that he was crowned world champion in 2009.
That he fought against the wishes of his body possibly means that there were certain contractural obligations he had to fulfil. Only he and his close associates would know.
Moving ahead, we know that his preparation for London has to be more uniformed, but his fitness is key.
A world championship title is significant but it is the Olympics that raises your stakes and prestige.
Brathwaite is capable of walking the same path of bronze medallist Obadele Thompson-the first Bajan to win an individual Olympic medal, but he has to be on top of his game physically and mentally.
Even though he is now playing catch-up behind his main rivals, I am convinced they haven’t gone anywhere and left him when you consider that this year’s champion clocked the same 13.14 seconds that earned him the crown two years ago.
My analogy is that he has fallen behind the clock and he has to work hard to get back up to a speed that will make him competitive again.
I believe it is in this regard that the committee set up by late Prime Minister David Thompson to oversee Brathwaite’s course to London must ensure all the necessary resources are put in place for him to mount a formidable challenge to get on the podium.
The rest will be up to him.
An individual medal in the sprints looks to be out of the question given that sub 10 in the men’s 100 metres and a sub 20 in the 200 metres are the order of the day.
We have no current sprinters in this realm, nor do we have the equivalent among the women so I think it would be better to try relay combinations that would make us more competitive than we presently are in the individual sprints.
I think we have a promising crop of 400-metre runners and a thought can be given to preparing such a group for the 4 x 400 metres relay.
I think, though, they should be close enough to the current world standard for it to be seen as a meaningful investment. In fact, they should be required to get the “A” qualifying mark.
Free rides to major games should be a thing of the past. we do athletes’ development more harm than good when we attempt to accommodate them on national teams knowing full well they are going only to participate rather than compete.
Prospective Olympic contenders must also have the right to have enough warm-up meets to put them on the same threshold as their opponents.
In this regard, I am sure our senior athletes, in particular, will be paying greater attention to the tale of the tape and the clock in an attempt to be on the team for London.
What a time it will be if we can get another medal after a 12-year wait.