Talented Strachan back on track
Published:Sunday | May 1, 2022 | 12:08 AMHubert Lawrence - Gleaner Writer
WHEN LAST Saturday’s Velocity Fest women’s 200 metres was finished, the assembled press swarmed Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce. It was a collective act of respect for the woman who is without doubt the most successful 100-metre runner in history. As Fraser Pryce answered queries about her future plans and her form, the woman who won the race – Bahamian Anthonique Strachan – stepped quietly on to the National Stadium infield, alone.
With the speed that has brought her four World Championships 100-metre titles and two Olympic gold medals, the 35-year-old Fraser-Pryce had blazed around the turn. Strachan fired her jets in the last 50 metres and zoomed home, first, in 22.55 seconds, with the Jamaican following in 22.79.
Strachan first came on to the Jamaican radar with a fluent sprint double at the Carifta Games in Montego Bay in 2011 and she did it again in 2012 as a prelude to the World Under-20 Championships in Barcelona, Spain. In the same city that hosted the 1992 Olympic Games, she stretched away from her contemporaries in the 100 and then broke a Veronica Campbell-Brown 200-metre meet record with a rapid win, timed in 22.53 seconds.
Among those behind her in the 200 were Dina Asher-Smith of Britain and her current training partner, Shericka Jackson.
That was a decade ago. Injuries knocked her off stride and a move to Jamaica’s MVP Track Club, Fraser-Pryce’s home from 2005 to 2019, didn’t put Strachan back on track immediately.
This year has been good so far. The three-time Olympian surprised with a time of 7.17 seconds for the 60 metres indoors and, on the 26th, she hurried through a 100-metre race at the Stadium in 10.99 seconds. That buried her 10-year-old personal best of 11.20.
Strachan reacted calmly to her win on Saturday. Confronted with her exciting 2022 form, she simply said, “I feel okay, can’t really complain about anything.”
She grinned a little at a question about the state of her workout programme.
TRAINING GOING WELL
“Training’s going fine. I mean, you can sorta see that,” the 28-year-old Strachan granted. The 22.55 is 0.01 faster than her 2021 seasonal best, set in August at the Olympics.
Her times will restart talk about her taking up the mantle from the Bahamian ‘Golden Girls’, Pauline Davis-Thompson, Debbie Ferguson McKenzie, Chandra Stirrup and Sevatheda Fynes. During their glory years, Davis-Thompson and Ferguson-McKenzie took gold in the 200 in 2000 and 2001, respectively, with Fynes winning the bronze in the 1997 World Championships 100. Stirrup raced to gold at the World Indoors and silver and bronze in the 100 at the World Championships.
Strachan is keeping her feet on the ground. “Everything is going fine right now. I have a lot of things to work on.
“But I don’t think it’s nothing that I should stress myself over right now.”
If all goes well, her time in the spotlight will come.