Smith offers decathlon help

The last time Jamaica staged an international multi-event meet, Maurice Smith defeated a young prospect who later became a star. Now Smith, Jamaica’s finest decathlete, wants to help to develop a new generation of Jamaican multi-eventers

Smith, then 30, beat Canada’s 21 year-old Damian Warner at the 2011 NACAC Multi-Events Championships on The University of West Indies/Usain Bolt track in Mona. Smith topped Warner with 8,078 points to 7,760.

The encounter foretold the Canadian’s rise to stardom. Opposing winds hampered performances, but Smith recalled, “He was definitely fast, and I saw that he was young and I saw the potential; I definitely saw the potential for him to be better.”

The Jamaican was right

In the years to come, Warner won medals at three World Championships, gold at the 2014 Commonwealth Games and silver at the 2016 Olympics. In addition, he is the holder of the world decathlon best in the 100 metres at 10.12 seconds.

“It was good for me as well to have him there in Jamaica to push me over 8,000 points, given the conditions,” added Smith.

No Jamaican has scored over 8,000 points since then, and Smith is concerned with the development of locals in the discipline.

“I would definitely say we need praying coaches who understand the multis, for one, and you know, we have the facilities. But do we have all the equipments that we need to train for multi-events? I’m not so certain about that,” said Smith, who scored over 8,000 points in 20 decathlons.

“Do we have a structured programme that’s geared to multis? No, we don’t. That’s something that I am interested in starting in Jamaica, being that I’ve competed at the highest level and was one of the greatest in the world at the decathlon, you know. I think I possess the knowledge and what it takes to get there, and I still have a passion for sports,” offered the 2007 World Championship runner-up.

Smith recognises that the pole vault event could be a sticking point for young decathletes due to the lack of equipment, and noted that he suffered the same issues until he arrived in the US collegiate system and received greater exposure in the event.

“Once I got to Auburn, with coach Jerry Clayton, I had problems jumping over eight feet and I ended up jumping 4.80m, which was my highest,” Smith recounted. “I jumped that at the World Championships, when I won the silver, and a lot of the other decathletes didn’t expect that. So once I got that event, everything else just naturally fell into place.”

The vault is the eighth of the 10 events which comprise the decathlon.

Smith feels that improvement in the vault will benefit development in the decathlon.

“We can get more decathlon athletes in Jamaica if we get more into the pole vault,” Smith concluded.