Sprinters’ rivalry growing fast
It’s not exactly a threat, given that Canadian speedster sprinters Aaron Brown and Andre De Grasse have a long history as teammates.
But it comes as a warning from Brown that he intends to join his suddenly more heralded sprinting compatriot among the world elite.
“He knows I’m coming,” Brown said this week. “He knows I’m hungry.”
Why t he bravado and warning from the 24- yearold Brown, a Toronto native who has been hanging around the fringes of highend sprinting for the past couple of years? Unless you are a hard- core track fan, you might have missed the blazing news from Florida last weekend.
It was there that Brown out- duelled American star Tyson Gay in a heat of the Star Athletics Meet in Montverde and stopped the clock in 9.96 seconds. Not only did Brown finally crack the benchmark 10-second barrier that all young sprinters seek, he became just the fourth Canadian to do so. (Excluding Ben Johnson, whose times have been wiped due to drug violations.)
Perhaps most significantly, for Brown, it was a direct response to De Grasse and his breakthrough 2015 season that included a bronze medal at the world championship in Beijing and a personal best of 9.92.
“He did light a fire under me,” Brown said of his former USC teammate. “Seeing another Canadian come taking the world by storm — I was never against him because he’s still my friend. But I wanted to be on that level.
“For so many years I had dreams of bringing Canada back to the national spotlight. I wanted to put Canada back on the map and the way that he did it was exactly how I pictured it.”
The breakthrough signals a potential rivalry with De Grasse, setting up a showdown at the Canadian Olympic Trials in Edmonton on July 7.
The race in Florida has changed so much mentally for Brown, who trains in the Sunshine State with former U. S. Olympian Dennis Mitchell, who also coaches U.S. star Justin Gatlin.
Brown gets enthused talking about the physical rush that came with this past Saturday’s race and how it further boosted his confidence.
“Having Tyson in the lane beside me and knowing I could keep up with him, I knew I was in a good place,” Brown said. “I knew I could run that fast but your body still has to do it. Your legs have to move that fast, it has to take the number of steps to run that actual time.”
At the Canadian trials, it isn’t essential to beat De Grasse to qualify for Rio — a top- two finish punches his Olympic ticket. The two have known each other from their days growing up in Toronto and Brown helped recruit De Grasse to USC. That familiarity has motivated Brown.
“I’m confident in myself and my abilities and I’m going to be prepared to run my best. I’m going to keep training and keep working hard and I’ ll go to Edmonton and show the world what I can do.”