No half measures for this ‘Quadzilla’
TRAE Williams believes his massive quads are capable of powering him below the magical 10-second mark but admits he will have his work cut out in the more immediate future against a crack Commonwealth Games field.
The 20-year-old clocked 10.10sec – the fastest time by an Australian in 11 years – to win the national 100m title on the Gold Coast on Friday.
Nicknamed “Quadzilla”, Williams sheepishly claimed this week he could hack squat 525kg.
The muscle-bound sprinter is sure to gain cult status when he takes on a 100m Games field that could include Canadian superstar Andre De Grasse and Jamaican pair Yohan Blake and Asafa Powell.
“My time would have medalled at the past four Commonwealth Games but I know this one is going to be a lot faster,” he said.
“They’ve all run 9.9 and lower, so it’ll be an interesting final. I wouldn’t be surprised if it was one of the fastest.”
Williams hopes to shave further time off before April’s Games at the same Carrara Stadium track but says the end goal is a sub-10-second time at Tokyo’s 2020 Games.
Only three countrymen have gone faster than Williams did last Friday, with Patrick Johnson’s 9.93sec effort in 2003 the only in-competition, sub-10sec time recorded by an Australian.
“There’s still a lot of things I need to work on technically,” Williams said.
“Point one (of a second) doesn’t sound like much but when you’re racing, it makes a big difference but hopefully Tokyo – I think it’s in me.”