Most people choose their careers, while for some, it is the career that chooses them.

The latter is particularly true for St Mary High School’s track and field Head Coach Dwayne Williams.

In seven years, Williams has gone from being a first-timer to double championship-winning coach at St Mary High.

He won his first Eastern Championships title in 2014 and has now reaped double success, with both the boys’ and girls’ teams winning the second meet in the 2017 Digicel Grand Prix Athletics series — the Eastern Secondary Schools Sports Association (ESSSA) Championships, which ended at Usain Bolt/UWI Track last Thursday.

Growing up though, track and field was the farthest thing from Williams’ mind.

“I’m a better cricketer — an all-rounder, a very good cricketer,” is the man’s self-description of what he believes to be his true talent.

“I played cricket for Guy’s Hill High in the Under-16 and Headley Cup, and I was the captain of both teams,” he said of his days growing up.

Later on, Williams would go on to represent the parish of his birth, St Mary, in the Social Development Commission INSPORTS all-island cricket tournament.

In a sense, his early association with track and field was purely coincidental, as he had set out on a career path as a teacher, after completing his diploma at Moneague College in St Ann.

His first placement was at Cornwall College in Montego Bay, St James, which is where he started coaching.

The following year, he moved back home to St Mary and got the coaching job at the institution.

“When I came to St Mary High I started to learn the whole ropes of coaching track and field. I didn’t know much about it, but as the years went by I gained knowledge,” Williams informed.

Part of that knowledge meant retooling, which he did at G C Foster College, where he gained a bachelor’s degree.

He also recently completed an International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) specialist coaching course, in December last year.

One who is not afraid to share ideas, much of what Williams has learnt came from reasoning with fellow members of his coaching staff, including a man he values highly, Kirkal Robinson.

“Seventy-nine out of 100 times we disagree, but we meet in the middle. He knows the sport very well; he is very educated and a student of track and field, and he’s committed to the job.

“I have a nice group of friends and all of my friends are a part of the St Mary High School coaching squad,” he said of the contribution of his friend.

“We go out now and then and have a drink; we’ve a party that we promote, ‘Colours’, and we have been doing that for the past five years. We try to mix the work with a lot of fun. We all want to remain young,” Williams noted of the way he occupies his time away from the track.

“They say all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy”.

He certainly has a way of staying happy and the St Mary High School family loves it, after topping the overall standings at Eastern Championships with 717.50 points. They were followed by Buff Bay High (650), Titchfield High (324.50), Oberlin High (313), and Morant Bay High (218) in the top five.

“To come out here and score so many points, it’s a good achievement on behalf of the athletes and the whole St Mary High coaching squad.

“I promised the principal (Mrs Jullett Frazer-Sadaar) that we were going to win because we have a very supportive Principal, and I must commend her on providing the things that we need,” Williams noted.

St Mary High won the girl’s race with 427 points ahead of Buff Bay (363), and then topped the boys’ section with 290.50, again besting Buff Bay (287).

Digicel, as part of its $15-million sponsorship for the 2017 Digicel Grand Prix Athletics Championship, provides each regional champion school, boy and girl, with $250,000, second-place teams $100,000, and $50,000 for third.

The overall champions, to be decided by points earned at the finals only, will earn the grand prize of $1 million cash towards their sports programme, with $500,000 for second and $200,000 for third.

In addition to a $25,000 scholarship grant that comes with a Championship record, each qualifier for the finals, meaning the top two athletes from those events, will get $5,000 towards costs associated with their participation. Such benefits never previously existed.