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Greene to contest biggest race of his career

May 15, 2008 Sports

–faces Bolt, Capel in 100m at Hampton

He would always blather about someday competing on the big stage among some of the greatest names in modern day track and field and as destiny would have its way, that time for national sprint champion Rawle Greene has come.

With the stage set at the Hasley Crawford Stadium for the 2008 Hampton International Games, Greene will make his first step toward scripting his name among the best athletes in the world tomorrow night when he competes in the 100m heats.

It will be no easy time for the most dominant Guyanese sprinter since the dawn of the New Millennium; Greene faces stiff challenges from within the region and beyond. However, his mind is made up for the making or breaking of his long athletic career.

The buzz he created among the Guyanese community in Trinidad since his arrival here around midday on Monday is enough motivation to propel him to the 10.20 seconds (electronic time) he is desirous of clocking in the 100m this weekend.

But the truth be told, Greene is a long way from getting to that point in the International 100m race and will more or less have to approach the event one round at a time. Each round is guaranteed to pose different challenges for the athlete.

He told Kaieteur Sport yesterday that he is fully prepared physically for the biggest race of his career and is working on the mental aspects of his game. He fine tunes his craft at the University of the West Indies in St Augustine under Trinidadian coach, Ian Andrews.

“My mental preparation is coming along; strength wise, I am in excellent shape. You know when people hear names like (Usain) Bolt they get jittery,” Greene said, adding that it’s not a big deal for him because he competed with Bolt in the 200m at Hampton last year.

“Basically I am trying to concentrate on the different phases in the race and not on Bolt or anybody else; I am here to qualify for the Olympic Games, space (position) really don’t matter…I am here to run a fast time,” Greene declared.

The Olympic qualifying ‘A’ standard time for the men’s 100m is 10.21s while the ‘B’ standard is 10.28s; Greene has a personal best electronic time of 10.34s. The International Association of Athletics Federation (IAAF) recognises the standards of the Hampton Games.
Some of the confirmed big names for the International 100m include Jamaica’s Usain Bolt, United States of America’s John Capel, Trindad and Tobago’s Marc Burns, Jacey Harper and Niconnor Alexander among other athletes from across the world.
Bolt, the World Junior and Central American and Caribbean record holder over 200m with 19.93s and 19.73s respectively, will compete at Hampton after running the second fastest 100m time ever at the Jamaica International Invitational early this month.
The 2007 World Athletics Championships 200m silver medallist ran 9.76s in Jamaica to second Asafa Powell’s world record 9.74s time. If Bolt turns in another such performance this weekend providing Greene make the final, the race is expected to be quick.
Coming off a two–year suspension for the banned substance cannabis (marijuana), Capel like Greene is using the event as a window to this year’s Olympic Games in Beijing, China. Capel disclosed his intention to compete at the Olympics early this year.
His period of ineligibility commenced on March 15, 2006, the date when the IAAF imposed their provisional suspension on him. He had tested positive for the second time in February 2006. The American sprinter won the 200m at the 2003 World Athletics Championships in Paris.
Meanwhile, Burns clocked 10.21s in the 100m at a Florida State University meet last Saturday. He made the final of the last two world championships and was part of the Trinidad 4x100m silver medal team, which also comprised Harper and Alexander, at the 2005 World Championships.
Greene has his hands full at Hampton this year but is fully prepared to deal with the stiff competition ahead; he is a former champion in the International men’s 100m and ran a blistering 10.20 seconds (hand time) at the President’s Invitational meet in Guyana recently.

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