Home|Sports|McCoy ready to challenge JonesSports
Male sprinters expected to put on a show at nationals
Sheldon LongleySend an emailJune 13, 2023 215 4 minute readFacebookTwitterLinkedInShare via Email
To say that men’s sprints are back in The Bahamas this year might be an understatement given the performances that have been recorded.
A couple of young Bahamian collegiate sprinters, in particular, are running really fast. So fast, that they are now considered threats for any sprint title they line up for and could be the future of men’s sprinting in The Bahamas.
Texas Tech junior Terrence Jones is having the season of his life, running personal best times of 9.91 seconds in the 100 meters (m) and 19.87 seconds in the 200m. The 100m time equals a 16-year-old Bahamian national record that was set by Derrick Atkins at the 2007 World Championships in Osaka, Japan, and the latter was good enough for the bronze medal in the men’s 200m at the National Collegiate Athletic
Association (NCAA) Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships this past weekend.
Indoors, Jones won the 60m title at the NCAA Division I Indoor Track and Field Championships, running 6.46 seconds and coming within a hundredth of the NCAA record he shares with two others.
Just 20, Jones has established himself as the favorite for the double sprint title at the Bahamas Association of Athletic Associations (BAAA) National Jr. and Sr. Track and Field Championships this year. Interestingly enough, he stiffest competition might just come from another 20-year-old.
Wanya McCoy is the other Bahamian collegiate sprinter who is having the season of his life. The Clemson University sophomore has run personal best times in both short sprints this year, clocking 10.10 seconds in the 100m and 20.41 seconds in the 200m.
In the shorter race, McCoy has tied the late Shavez Hart as the fourth fastest in Bahamian history. Jones has tied Atkins for the top spot.
In the 200m, Jones is now second fastest behind national record holder Steven Gardiner, joining Gardiner as the only Bahamians to ever run under 20 seconds in the men’s 200m legally. McCoy is now the 10th fastest Bahamian of all-time in the men’s 200m.
He said he is looking forward to running against Jones at the nationals. Jones is the defending champion in the 100m and will be the man to beat in the short sprints. The BAAA National Jr. and Sr. Track and Field Championships is set for July 5-7 at the Thomas A. Robinson Track and Field Stadium.
“I feel pretty good. With the competition that I expect to get from Terrance, that will only cause me to run faster. I feel I could go sub-10 and qualify for the world championships,” said McCoy. “That’s my boy (Jones), but on the track, we’re not boys, so we’ll be going after one another. The goal is to qualify for the worlds and to become national champion so I’ll definitely be going after it.”
The qualifying mark in the 100m for the world championships is 10 seconds flat. In the 200m, the mark is 20.16 seconds, a time just two Bahamians, Gardiner and Jones, have run faster than. Coming off a trying collegiate season, McCoy said he’s looking forward to the challenge. He also excels in the 400m, running 45.91 seconds indoors this year.
“I feel like I have a lot left in the tank,” said McCoy. “When I ran 10.21 in March, I knew that I was up there. I got hurt in the same race, and that was a minor setback, but I got healthy and came back and ran a 20.41 in the 200 at conference which was my best for the season. The 10.10 in the 100 at regionals was a bit shocking, but I know that I could go faster. I know what I’m capable of. All-in-all it was a great season. There were some injuries, but that is a part of the sport. There are still some knick-knacks but I’ll come out at nationals and compete to the best of my ability.”
Long-term, McCoy said he was undecided as to what event he would specialize in, but for now, the half-lapper is his favorite race.
“I feel like I could do it all. In the shorter races, I’m working on getting a better start. I have the top end speed – I just need to get the start together,” he said. “Terrence (Jones) had a hell of a season and I’m definitely motivated and encouraged by that. Coming off last year when he was hurt a lot, he really rebounded this year and took his game to another level. To come back and did what he did this year, that shows a lot of heart and commitment. I feel as if we’re going to put on a show at nationals. I just want Bahamians to come out and support us at the nationals in about a month. It’s going to be exciting and we will need all the support we could get.”
For his efforts, McCoy ended his collegiate season as a second-team All-American in the men’s 4x400m relay, a first team all-conference in the men’s 4x400m relay, a first team all-conference in the men’s 400m, and a second team all-conference in the men’s 200m.
Indoors, he was named the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) men’s track most outstanding athlete for his efforts. He was the champion of the 400m, the fifth place finisher in the 200m, and a key member of the ACC Champion men’s 4×400m relay team. His 400m time of 45.91 seconds is second-fastest in school history.
In the men’s 100m, Jones and McCoy lead the way among Bahamians and then there are athletes like decathlete Kendrick Thompson, Samson Colebrooke and Karon Dean who have run under 10.35 seconds this year.
“The leg speed is definitely there,” said McCoy. “If we could get together and get the stick around, I’m sure we could qualify for the worlds in the men’s 4x100m relay. We just have to go out there and run to the best of our ability and we should be able to qualify.”
The Bahamas would have to post a time fast enough to enter the top 16 teams in the world in order to qualify for the world championships. The 19th World Athletics Championships is set for August 19-27 at the National Athletics Centre, in Budapest, Hungary.
Locally, here at home, the 100m is expected to be a big draw, and Jones and McCoy could certainly be in the spotlight.