Talbot moves to Texas in bid for Olympics
Athletics, swimming and angling
DANNY Talbot will spend the winter in America as part of his plan to win a place in the Great Britain team for the Olympic Games in Tokyo next year.
Talbot, a former winner of the Running Bath/chronicle performance of the month competition, has previously been a regular visitor to Florida for some sunshine training during the British winter.
But this winter the Box international 200m sprinter and 2017 World Championships relay gold medallist has switched camps to Texas where he is linking up with new coach Vince Anderson, who is chief coach at the prestigious Texas A&M University and has acquired an enviable reputation over a lifetime in the sport.
After a tough last couple of years, in which a bad ankle injury kept him out of action for over two seasons, Talbot admits he feels rejuvenated by the decision to leave his long-time base at Loughborough University and launch a new phase of his career.
“With all the difficulties I had with injury and rehab I found it very difficult being at Loughborough for the past two years,” said Talbot.
“It was just not easy being in that environment and while I have done a lot of good work with Benke [Blomkvist, his coach at Loughborough] and it was difficult leaving him he appreciated why I needed to go and try something different.
“We are still good friends and there was no awkwardness.”
Talbot has never been afraid to take himself out of his comfort zone as he showed when he left his childhood mentor Dan Cossins and their base at Bath University after many years to move to Loughborough.
Now he has made an even bigger step to cross the Atlantic to America but, having been given an
unexpected lifeline with the postponement of the Olympics, which he would have in all honesty struggled to make due to his injury problems, he is determined to make the most of his reprieve.
“I am intending to spend the winter in Texas and come back in the middle of May for the European track season and get ready for the Olympic trials,” added Talbot.
“I will be training with a good group of sprinters from the Caribbean and a Nigerian so it should be good.”
■■ CARL Ucker was the leading Team Bath runner in the Two Tunnels half marathon trial race held recently.
Tucker completed the trial course in a time of 1hour 26minutes 43seconds for seventh place and top veteran overall with victory going to Edward Burke of Southville Running Club (1:19.18).
Clubmate Rachel Burns placed sixth (1:42.13) in the women’s race.
In the 5k race Team Bath’s Jasper Cox finished ninth and third junior (19:36) and Freya Buglass of Avon Valley Runners was second woman (19:54).
■■ The athletics coverage in the Chron is sponsored by Running Bath.