PHILADELPHIA, Pennsylvania – National junior sprint star Bouwahjgie Nkrumie has vowed that he would return to the track from his hamstring injury a much faster and stronger athlete before the season ends.

Nkrumie, who is the national junior record holder in the 100 metres with 9.99 seconds, picked up a right hamstring injury during the heats of the boys’ Under-20 100m at the Carifta Games in The Bahamas earlier this month.

The 19-year-old Nkrumie, who is the World Under-20 100m silver medallist, said he has been receiving treatment for his injury and he is now very eager to return to the track pretty soon.

“I know that I will be back to my best whenever I get back out on the track. I just need to work on not only one aspect right now, but the mind and injury and so everywhere just need to be positive right now,” said Nkrumie, who the Jamaica Observer caught up with on Friday at the Penn Relays in Philadelphia before Kingston College’s (KC) victory in the final of the Championships of America 4x400m relay event

“For me, this is first time that I am getting a hamstring injury, so it is not easy for me to just get over it like that, but I am improving mentally because I am doing a lot of rehab and I am strengthening the area,” he said.

Nkrumie stressed that despite his injury setback, which forced him to miss the Penn Relays, this will not affect his dreams of becoming the world’s top 100m sprinter.

“This will definitely not hold me down because I have a lot of goals so I cannot let it hold me down,” he said. “I am just going to take it step by step and try to get the best out of this season; sometimes I feel positive and sometimes I feel down, but the down part is natural because any athlete would feel down if they get an injury, especially when you are in top form,” Nkrumie said.

Meanwhile, Nkrumie’s coach at KC, Andre Wellington, said his charge’s recovery has been going according to plan and he is confident that he will return to the track much stronger than before.

“Things are looking positive based on the feedbacks from the professionals [and the] comeback [is] on track [for him] to try to make the senior team and that is before the season ends,” he said.

Wellington noted that it is possible that Nkrumie could compete at the Racers Grand Prix on June 3 in Kingston. “That is the plan, we are aiming at it, but we are not going to rush him at the same time,” he said.