James-King almost quit

THE BOND between a father and son is one that Jamaican 400-metre hurdles national champion Malik James-King knows very well.

His son, he says, is his biggest motivation.

The Olympic-bound athlete is in the form of his life having set a new personal best of 47.42 seconds at the National Championships weeks ago.

James-King said much of his success comes from knowing his son is watching every race and expecting the best from his father.

“My son is my biggest motivation, honestly. He is my biggest, biggest motivation. Most times I’ll call him and I say ‘Hey, I’m going to run today’ and he says to me ‘Okay daddy, run, run, run, run!’ The fact that he says those stuff to me and he understands, I’m very grateful because it tells me I am building a path that he can be better than I was.”

James-King said each race today takes on added importance for him because he knows how easy it is for it all to end.

The 400 hurdles man had walked away from it all during university, explaining that the lack of financial support combined with the impact of the pandemic had left him spiralling.

“Honestly, when I was at university, it was going good at first but I didn’t have the financial support to really carry me through,” he said.

“I was not really focused because I had just left high school, I was young and was just finding myself.”

However, with his son and family’s expectations, James-King embarked upon achieving a resurgence in his career and is now ready to make his first-ever Olympic berth.

“When COVID hit, I literally gave up because I thought it didn’t make any sense but then after, I said I was going to try again. It wasn’t really going good but I started to find myself little by little. It is very heartwarming knowing that every time I step out there, I have someone that I have to get this job done for.”

James-King said his dream to compete at the Olympic Games was one he had never thought possible.

However, the support of his family and coaching team has given him the extra push to compete against the best in the world.

This, he said, has been the difference for him this year.

“Knowing that I have a great support team behind me with my agent, my coach, my girlfriend and my mom, it is a good feeling to know that you have people in your corner that really believe in you,” he said.

“Sometimes it’s hard and just that extra push, that extra call really goes a far way, mentally. A lot of people don’t understand it, but once you’re good mentally then you’ll perform a lot better.”

He enters the Paris Olympics as the second-fastest Jamaican ever in his event. He said his goal is to live up to those expectations and maintain his place as one of the best hurdlers Jamaica has ever produced.