McLeod blames cramps after trials stumble, still hopeful of Olympic spot
KINGSTON, Jamaica —- Olympic champion Omar McLeod has blamed cramps in his calf muscle for his disappointing performance at the Olympic trials on Saturday that saw him finish at the back of the pack in the sprint hurdles after being tripped up early in the race.
McLeod hit the first hurdle, lost momentum and never recovered, finishing down the field in 16.22 seconds.
Commonwealth Games champion Ronald Levy won in 13.10 ahead of second-placed Damion Thomas (13.11) and Hansle Parchment (13.16) in third.
In a post to Instagram captioned ‘What happened’ after the race, McLeod said he had been suffering from cramps and pointed a finger at the organisers of the trials for what he indicated was an inconsiderate schedule.
“Typically at our championships we always run semis and finals on the same day, but without any logical consideration for the athletes, we found out upon arrival that the schedule had changed last minute, where they pushed the finals to 8am… That really did not sit well with me,” McLeod said in the lengthy post.
Noting that it was difficult to have to compete so early in the morning after running in the semis the night before, McLeod said he “barely” got four hours of sleep but “showed up nonetheless with a positive attitude”.
However, he said he began to suffer from cramps shortly before the start of the race.
“They made the final call to the call room, and just like that, it was time to race! I walked out on the track put my spikes on, and bomb, the worst thing all us athletes dread so bad begun to happen. I just started having severe cramps in my abductor and calves,” McLeod said.
After subsiding a bit, his calves “started cramping really bad again” in the starting blocks, McLeod said.
“I saw the doctor after the race and he told me that my cramps were due to fatigue and also agreed that coming back that early for a final was not ideal,” he added.
Still, McLeod is holding onto hope that he will still be selected for the Tokyo Olympics.
“I do not know what will happen. But I am hoping and praying I get a chance to defend that title,” he said.
That decision will rest with the Jamaica Athletics Administrative Association (JAAA) which ultimately selects who represents Jamaica at the Olympics.
