Fred Kerley didn’t know he was the fastest man in the world when he crossed the finish line at Hayward Field on Saturday night. Like many others in his life, he had to wait and wonder.
A large number of runners (three of whom are from the United States) finished the men’s 100-meter dash within a short range of each other at the World Championships in Athletics, and it was a flame of speed as dusk came down to the stadium. Curly in a red and blue speed suit crouched down to study a video board. He only knew he had won the gold medal when No. 1 appeared next to his name with a time of 9.86 seconds.
“I got the job done,” said Curly, an efficient person in both his steps and his words.
Curly, a former 400-meter specialist who wasn’t foreseen during the growing season, including praise, gold medals, and world championships, raised his arms when the rest of the results were posted, revealing: did. Medal sweep for Americans, Marvin Bracy-Williams in 2nd place and Trayvon Bromell in 3rd place, both finishing in 9.88 seconds. Bracey-Williams worked on his training partner, Bromell, in an episode of unscripted joy.
“I don’t know what went through Marvin’s head,” Bromell said. “I know it’s an emotion.”
Olympic champion Lamont Marcell Jacobs withdrew from the tournament before Saturday’s semi-final heat. Jacobs was said to have been dealing with a muscle injury. “I can stop” Jacobs Said on twitter..
Curly managed to just add a footnote to Jacobs’ absence.
Curly, a cool athlete, usually expressed his emotions after the victory. He said he was watching home in Texas and was probably thinking of his aunt Virginia Curly, who “blowed up his phone.” She had been raising him since the age of two with some of his brothers. At that time, Fred’s father was in jail, and his mother was “wrongly turning life,” according to the first-person story he wrote. 2019 Spike Magazine.. At one point, Virginia Curly had 13 children under the roof.
“Without her, I probably wouldn’t be talking to all of you right now,” Curly said on Saturday. “She actually sacrificed her life for me, my brother, my sister, and my cousin.”
“I’m grateful that she put me in a position to win in my life,” he added.
Still, Curly wasn’t a top-notch rookie who graduated from Taylor High School on the outskirts of Austin. He landed at South Plains College in Levelland, Texas, where he suffered a hamstring injury as a freshman and showed a modest attitude. 11th place at 400 meters At the junior high school national championship as a second grader. But he always worked hard, and without complaint, former South Planes coach Chris Bean said.
“He has always been a great teammate,” said Bean, who is now the director of women’s track and field at Anna High School in the suburbs of Dallas. “That is, he would be willing to die on a 4×400 truck for our team.”
With more training, Curly’s talent has emerged. At Texas A & M, he became the NCAA Champion at 400 meters in 2017. Two years later, he became a bronze medalist at a world championship event.
His future seemed to be 400 years, but he began to look at short sprints during the pandemic. In a sense, Curly said he wanted to return to his roots as a sprinter and long jumper. Or, as he said, “I’m just back in my playground.”
The world of trucks was a fuss about his unconventional decision. Shifting from 400 to 100 isn’t exactly the same as hanging a spike in an obstacle course and throwing a hammer, but it’s not a simple transition. The 100 requires a variety of skills and an improved approach to training. There is a reason why there are few world-class athletes in both areas.
However, Curly has proved his move by winning a 100-meter silver medal at the Tokyo Olympics last summer and continues to improve. At the US Championship last month, he ran 9.76 seconds in the semi-finals, set the third fastest time in American history, then dismantled Deep Field in the finals and won the title in 9.77 seconds within two hours.
But while many sprinters fill the reporter’s notes like prize fighters, Curly tends to keep his thoughts on himself. After winning the first round heat on Friday, he passed the reporter without asking a question.Reporters from the athletics website FloTrack Asking him about his plans for Saturday, Curly glanced over his shoulder and said without breaking his stride.What did you say last time?“
(No one immediately knew what Curly said last time. After some detective work, FloTrack’s shorts determined that Curly said “I understand.”)
Bracey-Williams said Curly was more playful and talkative around friends and fellow athletes.
“Contrary to common belief, he doesn’t look as stone as everyone thinks,” said Bracey Williams. “He’s a fun person, but when he comes out here, he’s all a business.”
Curly’s continuity of competition extends beyond the track. On Thursday, he played Cornhole with Bracey-Williams and treated it like an Olympic final. Curly will apparently compete for anything.
“Even if it’s drinking water,” Bracy-Williams said. “So you had to bring it.”
There is one topic that seems to be intriguing to Curly when it comes to speaking publicly, and that topic is a specific topic. Those who suspected that he would work at 100 meters. Who can say about the actual number of those people? But Curly used them real or imaginary to fuel him.
As for the future, Curly said he will race 200 meters this week and will be able to take on relay missions in both the 4×100 and 4×400 meters. (Please wait, or, as he likes to say, “you will see.”)
But while he knows that becoming a world champion at 100 meters will change his life, he said, “the future is bright.” He does not intend to limit himself or give in to his conventional knowledge.
“I’ll probably do 400 again within a few months,” he said.
