Is Ato Bolden's 200 meter national record under threat? Well T&T Sprinter Jereem Richards has his eyes set on breaking 19.77 at the Senior Open Championships. We caught up with the athlete who says he is primed and ready to light up the track on the weekend.
00:00TNT spinter Dream Richards has indicated that he's in the mood to make a run at Atto Bolden's a 19.77 second time over the 200 meter distance at the Hacy Crawford Stadium.
00:11I'm feeling good, I'm feeling good. I've been having a really good season and I'm just looking forward to competing and running fast this weekend.
00:19Alright, so what does that mean exactly? Are we looking at a record?
00:22Records? Records are definitely in the plans. I feel like, you know, as a professional athlete, you go out there and you want to do as best as you can.
00:33I've been close to the record in a few times in my career and I would love to be able to break it on home soil.
00:40So if it comes, it comes. If it doesn't, I have other opportunities, but I would like to do it.
00:45It is definitely in the plans, I would say.
00:47Richard says he's been training as a 400 meter athlete, which he indicated has improved his 200 meter time.
00:54I actually ran fast this season and I would say most people wouldn't know.
00:59I train as a 400 meter athlete, but then run the 200 meters.
01:03So the speed and everything is there, but in training, I strictly train like a 400 meter athlete.
01:09He has also been rubbing shoulders with the best in the world, like Olympic champion Noah Lyles
01:14and 400 meter world record holder, Wade Van Niekirk, which he believes is making him faster.
01:19Despite solely focusing on the 200 meter for the national championships,
01:23Richard still wants to do a sub 10 second sprint in the 100 meters.
01:27Yeah, definitely still on my mind.
01:29It's a little bit difficult because for me, training for the 4 and the 2 and then trying to get the sub 10,
01:40you kind of had to put all the eggs in the basket that you show about,
01:43and that for me is the 200 and the 400 meters.
01:45But I feel if the time is right, it could definitely happen.
01:49I had a personal best this year of 10-16, so I know it's there,
01:52but I would actually have to take more time to focus on that for it to actually happen.
01:57So it's there, but timing is everything, I would say.
02:01Thus far, he has done sub 20 in the 200 and a sub 44 in the 400,
02:06but can he run faster than 43.78 seconds, which is set at the Olympics?
02:1143.78 is the fastest I've ever run, but I think I'm way better than that.
02:16So in training as well, you've never run faster than 43.78?
02:20Even in training, I've never run faster, but sometimes I put up in training
02:24to show that there's capability to go faster.
02:27Richards continues to subscribe to the values of humility, discipline and obedience,
02:32which he believes is taking him to the summit of his sport.
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