Jamaica’s Omar McLeod explains that a loss of focus during the 110m hurdles final resulted in him crashing onto the track in Doha, Qatar in an unsuccessful defence of the World Championship title he won two years ago.

McLeod said that before the race he felt his hamstring itching and started giving it his attention, which he carried into the race. He said because the hamstring was his primary focus in the race, it affected his hurdling.

“It is the hamstring that threw me off. I was too focussed on the hamstring so I wasn’t able to focus technically. In a race like hurdles when you have so much going on [when you concentrate on] the hamstring, it happens. In hurdles, there just need to be one focus and there wasn’t that focus,” McLeod said in an interview after the race.

Eventual winner Grant Holloway from the United States of America and McLeod were the best starters and ran away from the rest of the pack early, with Holloway slightly ahead.

McLeod increased his pace in the middle of the race to join Holloway, but trying to move ahead, he clipped hurdle eigh. He managed to jump hurdle nine but crashed into the tenth and final hurdle and landed on the ground.

“I tried my very best to get through it. That didn’t happen. I gave it my all. I showed up here ready. I showed up and had it in the back of my mind that I am going to be prepared… This is what happens. I am very proud of myself. I made a lot of sacrifices this year, which has been really up and down. It is a funny thing but it is what it is,” he said.