Jamaican Rasheed Broadbell, easily one of the world’s top sprint hurdlers over the past two years, says last season’s disappointment has fuelled his sense of purpose ahead of this summer’s Olympic Games in Paris, France.

The 2022 Commonwealth Games gold medallist in the men’s 110-metre hurdles said the confidence gained from consistent performances and greater maturity will help him to better execute when it matters most.

The 2024 Summer Olympics, officially referred to as the Games of the XXXIII Olympiad, is scheduled to take place from July 26 to August 11.

Broadbell touched on a myriad minor but crucial factors that will lead to winning a gold medal. He emphasised that while the process may not appear onerous, it is the convergence of many tiny aspects and proper execution that ultimately leads to stepping on the podium.

“I feel like I’ve stamped my class in terms of being a professional 110[m] sprint hurdler,” the 23-year-old told the Jamaica Observer.

“I believe it is more about going out there, executing, and doing what I know I am great at. My main ambition is to make it to the finals and to be on the podium. Most definitely, I want the gold medal, but it takes a lot of work to get there, so I’m just focusing on making it to the finals and doing my best,” he stated.

BROADBELL…I feel like I’ve stamped my class in terms of being a professional 110 sprint hurdler (Photo: Naphtali Junior)

Broadbell discussed the mindset and goals required to compete at such a high level. His emphasis is on the importance of overcoming obstacles and the collaborative effort of the coach and support staff to achieve success.

“Knowing me, knowing the coach, and knowing the support team that I have around me, it’s just for me to go out there and just get over those ten barriers and get across the line. So I don’t think it is hard to do all those, but it requires a lot of things, a lot of things that add up to it. The little things that count, and stuff like those, are what get you across the line in that gold medal position,” he explained.

Broadbell suffered disaster at the 2023 World Athletic Championships in Budapest, Hungary, when he hit the penultimate barrier while leading his heat and crashed out of the competition.

Broadbell, who ran 12.94 seconds to win the Jamaican championships prior to the games, was one of the medal favourites before the mishap.

“Well, obviously everybody would have seen what had happened there,” he said.

“I felt I went to the games not really prepared race-wise but prepared track-wise to come and compete. I thought I had it in the bag where I could just take it round by round because, after the national trial, I picked up a small niggle where I was unable to go out for the two Diamond League meets that I had entered in.

“I pulled out of those because of the little niggling, and I didn’t want to risk it, but I felt it was like I was race-ready, and I just went out there with confidence, saying that I was in the shape to go and make the finals.”

However, Broadbell, with his never-say-die attitude, stated that he was confident in his preparation and that he would be 100 per cent ready for the Olympic Games.

“Since then, I have matured more in sports. Looking at it like that, I cannot take anything for granted, even when you are in the shape of your life. So I started to do things differently this season, and I mean, I started my preparation really early. I would have started at the end of October or early November, but this time I started in early September. I am not wasting any time; I am just ready to get going,” Broadbell affirmed.