Fit DeAndre Daley to wreak havoc – coach

The year 2022 was going to be great for DeAndre Daley of Herbert Morrison Technical High School. Daley was almost unstoppable in March and April, but disaster struck at the National Championships in June. With that disappointment behind him, Daley is rebuilding for the 2023 season.

Inadvertently, the 17-year-old speed merchant truncated his warm-up routine, which had been specifically designed to mitigate previous leg troubles. The folly laid him low in a national under-20 100-metre qualifying race that also featured his older brother, Mark-Anthony.

Herbert Morrison coach Claude Grant recalled, “With youngsters, after a while, then they feel everything is okay and the routine for warm-up was not followed, and that’s what caused what happened to him.”

The other factor was a variation of Daley’s usual race plan.

“Normally we don’t push too hard for the first five metres, allow the body to really be able to really fine-tune itself and then run,” coach Grant added.

“He had pushed too hard. His brother was in the same heat, and they might have become excited, pushing himself a little too hard, too early,” Grant said ruefully.

The mishap ruined a campaign where he had stormed to 10.30 at the Carifta Trials and 10.27 and 10.23 in the Carifta Games semi-final and final.

Ironically, Mark-Anthony placed third in the 100 final at trials and at the World Under-20 Championships in Cali, Colombia. He helped Jamaica to a silver medal in the 4x100.

DeAndre is back at school and on the mend.

“The objective for the season is to maintain health. If he maintains good health, then little or no complaint should happen,” the coach projected.

Mark Anthony, 19, is not eligible to run at the ISSA/GraceKennedy Boys and Girls’ Athletics Championships (Champs), where DeAndre looks set to make a mark, and is off on scholarship to South Dakota University.

“With both of them together, it would have been better, but we understand they are not twins and they are individuals, so they have to do what they have to do differently,” said Grant.

“Because they may not end up at the same place, they will have to set their own path.”

The brothers come from a respected Herbert Morrison tradition of sprinters, including Champs winners Sedaitha Palmer and Anthonique Campbell and senior internationals like Remona Burchell, the Olympic relay gold medallist, and 2018 World Indoor 400 finalist, Tovea Jenkins.

The man who coached Dexter Lee to three age group World titles has one mission. “My job is just to create the atmosphere at Herbert Morrison so that DeAndre can maximise on his true talent and also his academic progress,” he said.

With Daley watching from a distance, Carifta runner-up Bouwaghjie Nkrumie, the Kingston College captain, raced to the silver medal in Cali with a national junior record of 10.02 seconds. If they meet with defending Class I champion Bryan Levell of Edwin Allen High School and fast Kingston College newcomer Jeevan Newby, fans could see something special at Champs next year.