McLeod could be good over short sprint – Mills
Published:Friday | July 5, 2024 | 12:10 AMOrane Buchanan/Staff Reporter
WORLD-RENOWNED SPRINT coach Glen Mills believes that Omar McLeod’s suggestion that he could be switching from the 110-metre hurdles to the sprints must have been well considered.
McLeod, a former Olympic champion, the country’s national record holder, and a sub-10 sprinter, made the suggestion after just missing out on qualification to the Paris Olympics last weekend.
McLeod finished fourth behind the trio of national champion, Rasheed Broadbell, Orlando Bennett, and Hansle Parchment.
According to Mills, that decision is one that is difficult to criticise, save you were as close to the situation as his personal coach.
“Only McLeod and his coach can decide what’s good for him. He has a history of sprinting, so it may not be strange to him. A person of his experience at the top level must have some evidence to see that this is the best thing for him at this time,” said Mills.
The 30-year-old said he was struggling to find motivation for the hurdles after achieving as much as he has.
“To be honest, I fell out of love with hurdles because I’ve won everything in hurdles at a young age and it was very hard to find motivation for the hurdles. I think I am going to step down to something that my heart wants, which is to sprint. You’ve seen the indoors and the progression that I’ve had over the years, so it’s there.
“I have always known that, but I’ve never gotten the opportunity and the chance to really explore that, and I really want that for myself,” said McLeod, who moved to Italy where he has had something of a resurgence.
McLeod, a three-time national champion, was world indoor champion in 2016, world champion in 2017, and Olympic champion in 2016.
McLeod’s personal best of 9.99 seconds over the 100 metres makes him the first athlete to break the 10-second barrier and the 13-second barrier in the 110-metre hurdles.
According to Mills, if McLeod should follow through, he will be competitive.
“I don’t think that’s too old to be sprinting. You can look at what the sprinters are currently running, so I think he’ll be competitive,” said Mills.