As a teenager, Anthonique Strachan showed the tremendous potential of becoming one of the world’s brightest stars in track and field.
A five-time Carifta gold medalist, 2011 Pan Am Junior 100m champion and World U20 100 and 200m champion in 2012, things were looking up for the young Bahamian.
However, the intervening years have not been as kind. Injuries and a subsequent loss of confidence derailed the promising start to Strachan’s career and raised doubts about whether she would ever fulfil her promise.
“It’s actually very tough because you start to ridicule and judge yourself and then you go on social media and you see people judging you,” said Strachan, who is now 28 and having her best season in a decade.
“I haven’t PB’ed in 10 years so I see people telling me that I need to hang it up, get a 9-5, all sorts of stuff but nobody knows what happens when the lights are off so I try not to take it to heart but it’s sort of difficult to judge yourself and also have people out there judging you.”
So far, 2022 has been good to her. She opened up with a personal best of 10.99 in the 100m at the John Wolmer Speed Fest on March 26 at the National Stadium in Kingston, where she trains with the MVP Track Club and then on Saturday, April 23, she ran 22.55 to win the 200m against a field that included multiple Olympic and World Champion Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce.
Yes, the Pocket Rocket did slow noticeably over the last 50m but when you take into consideration the fact that Strachan ran a spectacular 23.24 into a -5.00 m/s wind at the Bermuda Games on April 9, you understand that the time she ran on Saturday night was no fluke.
So what exactly has brought about this pleasantly surprising return to form for the talented Bahamian sprinter?
She reveals that she accepted help and stopped putting pressure on herself to succeed.
“Because I had so many injuries it was difficult for me to trust coaching and other people or even trust myself and my coach told me to let somebody in to actually help me to help myself and that is what I have been trying to do this season,” she confessed.
“I stopped judging myself so hard and stopped piling on so many things and taking it one stride at a time.”
Strachan began to show a return to form in 2021 when she ran the 100m in 11.30, her best time since 2012 and 22.56 over 200m, her best time since 2014. She also made it to the semi-finals of the 200m at the Tokyo Olympics.
However, she had no idea that 2022 would have begun on a positive note.
“I bragged and boasted about opening up with a 10, but that was BS so now that it has actually happened I have sort of put it out there in the atmosphere and it sort of came through,” she said admitting that she is now a lot more confident than she has been during the past decade.
“It gives me plenty of confidence. I am trying to run all the times I can run right now to put myself in a better standpoint before the big girls come out to play.”
Leighton Levy is a journalist with 28 years’ experience covering crime, entertainment, and sports. He joined the staff at SportsMax.TV as a content editor two years ago and is enjoying the experience of developing sports content and new ideas. At SportsMax.tv he is pursuing his true passion - sports.
“The favourite is Thompson”-Boldon highlights Jamaican champion as man to beat in 100m in Paris
Trinidadian four-time Olympic medallist Ato Boldon has named Jamaican sprinting sensation Kishane Thompson as his favourite to take 100m gold at the Olympic Games in Paris.
Thompson, 23, is currently the world leader in the event after running a personal best 9.77 to win the 100m title at the JAAA/Puma National Senior Championships at the National Stadium in Kingston in June.
The MVP Track Club-trained sprinter also produced times of 9.82 and 9.84 in the heats and semi-finals, respectively, at those national championships and, most recently, ran 9.91 shutting down to win at the Gyulai Istvan Memorial in Hungary on July 9.
“Thompson is the favourite,” Boldon said in an interview with LetsRundotcom on YouTube on Friday.
“I know Noah (Lyles) is the World champion. I think Noah made it a little bit more interesting by running that 9.81 into a headwind which kind of almost converts to a 9.77 but there’s no way you can look at the way in which Thompson ran that 9.77 and just go ‘Oh Noah will beat him.’ Noah has his hands full with that guy,” Boldon said.
Blazing speed acknowledged, one thing that Thompson lacks that his other competitors don’t is experience competing at the highest level of the sport with this being his first time representing Jamaica at any level.
If there is anything to prevent Thompson from delivering on the form that he’s shown so far this season, Boldon believes that would be this lack of experience on a stage like the Olympic Games compared to his peers.
“There are things which I see people completely ignoring. Kishane Thompson has not been under the microscope of Olympic favourite. Rounds are a great equalizer. Noah has the medals that he does because of how well he runs rounds. Is Noah suddenly a lock for the silver? No but he does have his hands full,” he said.
“There are others who are going to be in the 100m that are used to the pressure and pressure is a big thing. If he’s able to pull this off, you write books about stuff like that,” he added.
Thompson's quest for Olympic glory will begin in the heats of the men's 100m beginning on Saturday' August 3.
Jamaica and France sign landmark MOU for bilateral sports cooperation
As the world eagerly anticipates the start of the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, Jamaica and France have marked the occasion with a significant step towards enhancing their bilateral relations in the field of sport. On July 24, the Honourable Olivia Grange, Jamaica's Minister of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport, and His Excellency Olivier Guyonvarch, the Ambassador of France in Jamaica, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for Bilateral Cooperation in Sport.
Minister Grange highlighted the symbolic timing of the agreement, stating, “It is certainly significant that it is happening at the time of the 2024 Olympics in the French capital, Paris. It embodies the importance of sport in establishing cooperation and friendship between the two countries."
The agreement outlines several areas of cooperation aimed at enhancing both nations' sports capabilities. One key aspect of the MOU is the sharing of experiences and the development of joint initiatives in sports. This includes promoting common standards for organizing major sporting events and developing high sports performance through the exchange of best practices, coaching training, and research.
Additionally, the agreement focuses on boosting the sports economy and sports tourism in both countries by sharing valuable information and insights. A significant emphasis is also placed on promoting sports ethics, with both nations committing to collaborate in the fight against doping.
Minister Grange commended the diligent efforts of Ambassador Guyonvarch and the teams from both the Ministry of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, in finalizing the MOU. She also referenced the ongoing friendship between Jamaica and France, demonstrated by events like the "2024 Road to Paris Olympics," which featured a symbolic relay baton passed globally and included French students from schools across Jamaica.
The MOU also aims to facilitate exchanges in seminars, conferences, and symposia involving experts in various sports disciplines such as fencing, rugby, handball, athletics, canoe-kayak/sprint, sailing, and skateboarding, among others.
Ambassador Guyonvarch expressed his enthusiasm about the agreement, stating, “On the eve of the 2024 Paris Olympic and Paralympic Games, the signing of this MOU on sports cooperation is a milestone in our bilateral relations, being the most ambitious and comprehensive agreement between our two countries in a strategic field of excellence. The implementation of this agreement, initiated by the Centre for Research on Sports Performance of Guadeloupe and the Faculty of Sports of UWI, will allow us to develop sports science, new practices, and more intense human exchanges between our two countries.”
The follow-up on the cooperation outlined in the MOU will be ensured by a Bilateral Steering Committee, which will meet annually in either of the two countries, ensuring that the goals and initiatives set forth are actively pursued and achieved.
This agreement not only strengthens the bond between Jamaica and France but also paves the way for enhanced sports performance, education, and ethical standards in both nations, promising a bright future for sports collaboration and excellence.
Gardiner, Charlton named flag bearers for The Bahamas ahead of Paris opening ceremony
Reigning 400m Olympic champion Steven Gardiner and World Indoor 60m hurdles champion Devynne Charlton will be flag bearers for The Bahamas at the much-anticipated Paris Olympic Games opening ceremonies on Friday.
Gardiner and Charlton are among the 20 athletes that will represent The Bahamas at the global multi-sport showpiece, which is currently under way and is scheduled to end on August 11.
Track and field and swimming are the two disciplines that the Bahamian contingent will contest at the Games.
Quartermiler Shaunae Miller-Uibo, high jumper Donald Thomas, who is making his fifth Olympic appearance, NCAA and national record holder in the javelin Rhema Otabor, decathlete Ken Mullings, and Charisma Taylor, who contests the triple jump and the 100m hurdles, are also on the team.
Rhaniska Gibbs and Lamar Taylor will represent the Bahamas in the pool.
Meanwhile, quartermiler Lacarthea Cooper finished third in the women’s 400m at the BAAA’s Nationals in 53.38 seconds behind second place finisher Quincy Penn in 53.35 seconds, but did not make the team.
However, Shania Adderley finished fifth in 54.50 seconds and was named to the Olympic team for her contributions as a member of the 4x400m mixed relay team at the World Relays.
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