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Ridley Ingram photo
JAMES: Pride of Grenada
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Two days before his 19th birthday on September 1, Grenada’s Kirani James chose the competitive arena of the World Championships, to capture the coveted gold medal in the men’s 400m. James, who spent eight months at the University of Alabama (Crimson Tide) honing his athletic skills under the guidance of Coach Harvey Glance, the 1976 US sprint relay gold medalist, signaled his arrival at the senior level in impressive fashion. James’s winning time of 44.60secs, a personal best, was achieved in superb manner as he stalked and outmaneuvered the reigning World, Olympic champion and title favorite, LaShawn Merritt of the US, who ran 44.63 with Kévin Borlee third in 44.90. Jamaica’s Jermaine Gonzales was a disappointing fourth in 44.99.
James, the Grenadian 2010 Sportsman of the Year, gave Grenada a lot of bragging rights by capturing his first senior title. His dominance should come as no surprise to track and field fans in the Caribbean, who saw him dominate the 400m at the Carifta Games and in other junior meets. James has the distinction of breaking Usain Bolt’s 400m Carifta record, and was the first athlete to win the 200/400m titles in international competition, accomplishing the feat at the 2009 World Youth Championships.
With this astounding victory, James celebrates an early 19th birthday. Given time and patience, he could break Michael Johnson’s 400m world record of 43.18secs.
He is the first Grenadian to win a senior global medal in track and field. And he did this by climbing to the top of the podium.
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