SLOWLY BUT SURELY!
Glen Mills, coach of rising Jamaican sprinter Oblique Seville, says his young charge is slowly returning to full fitness ahead of the hectic track and field season.
Seville, who has been hampered by a slight injury this season, clocked 10.13 in his first 100 metres race of the season at the JW SpeedFest at the National Stadium on Saturday.
Mills told the Jamaica Observer that he was quite pleased with Seville’s efforts on Saturday, but he said that the 21-year-old still has a lot of improvement to do this season.
“There is a lot more that needs to be done, and so the important thing for me, is if he can stay healthy so that he can train,” said Mills. The legendary coach said he was not at liberty to disclose the nature of any illness Seville suffered earlier this season.
“It is pretty early, and he is training, but he wasn’t a hundred per cent and not be being able to train as he would have liked, but he is healthy right now and so we will see how he progresses,” he said.
Seville was the second-fastest Jamaican in the world last year with a personal best time of 9.86 in the 100m, which he achieved at the National Championships at the National Stadium in Kingston in May.
The former Calabar runner went on to finish fourth in the final of the men’s 100m at the World Championships in Eugene, Oregon, last year.
Mills is the former coach of sprint great Usain Bolt, who holds world records in the 100m (9.58 seconds) and 200m (19.19).
The coach shared that he is not surprised with Seville’s 10.13 seconds run on Saturday in his first 100m race of the season, and notes that he is just praying that he remains healthy throughout the season.
“I am NOT surprised by that time because this a man who has run 9.86, and so 10.1 is nothing. He has run under 10 seconds numerous times last year, so there is nothing be surprised about,” said Mills,
“That is the time that he is capable of doing, and so to me, I don’t think it matters when you run it, whether you just start training or not,” he added.
Saturday’s race was Seville’s second outing this season, this after he clocked 6.42 seconds for second place in the men’s 60m event at the Gibson McCook Relays at the National Stadium last month.
Despite his exploits last season, Seville did not compete on the Diamond League circuit, but Mills stated that plans are now afoot to have the budding sprinter compete overseas this season.
“We always want to go on the circuit, and so we will see what his manager can arranged,” Mills said.