Stewart running towards Olympic Qualification

Mar 31, 2020 Sports

By Calvin Chapman

Guyana’s sprint ace, Akeem Stewart, in a recent interview with Kaieteur Sport has announced that since the 2020 Tokyo Olympic games will not be contested until next summer, he will use this new opportunity to the best of his ability to qualify for the men’s 100m and/200 dash.

Akeem Stewart finishing easily in front the pack during a development meet held at GDF earlier in the year.

– Akeem Stewart (winner) has vowed to use this extra year to better his chances of Olympic qualification.

Stewart appears to have recovered well from his injury last season that saw him being unable to participate at the National Championships and the Aliann Pompey Invitational. However, Stewart has finished his journey on the road to recovery and he turned in some decent performances at the four Athletics Association of Guyana (AAG) development meets held during this year, while stealing the show in the men’s the 200m dash at the Early Season Classic that was held this month.
The Early Season Classic, which also served at the final round of qualification for the 49th CARIFTA games which has now been postponed, was the last local track and field meet held at the National Track and Field Center, Leonora, and was also the last major sport activity held during the coronavirus pandemic.
Stewart, who is a Corporal in the Guyana Defence Force (GDF), registered 21.03 seconds to win the men’s 200m, while he finished third in the 100m behind Davin Fraser 10.29s and Emanuel Archibald 10.34s. Although those times are not what the Corporal would want them to be, he believes it is a good showing when you consider the fact he was injured.
During this pandemic, the diminutive speedster shared with Kaieteur Sport that he, like most athletes, has been involved mainly in core workouts and body weight exercises. “I have also been doing some long runs and hit the steps exercises on selected days.”
“The Covid-19 is a terrible disease and this much needed one-year delay of the Olympic games will give all athletes that weren’t in the best of fitness a second chance of qualify for the Olympics. I obviously, will ensure that I take full advantage of the extra time that I now have to prepare to a qualification push.”
Stewart concluded after stating that, “I would like to encourage all athletes to stay focus and continue working towards their goals and dreams because no matter what, we must bounce back and we will fly the Golden Arrowhead with pride.”

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