Canada’s fastest man strives to get back up to speed
By Kristen Odland, Calgary Herald May 19, 2011 Be the first to post a comment
As far as home-track advantages go, Foothill Athletics Park is as good as it gets for Sam Effah.
Just up Crowchild Trail at Sir Winston Churchill High School, he graduated from the high school track and field scene in 2006.
Then, a few months ago, the 21-year-old sprinter hung up his post-secondary spikes at the University of Calgary.
So, next month’s national track and field championships represent the next big step toward Effah’s ultimate goal of qualifying for the 2012 Summer Olympics.
“It’s huge,” said Effah. “To have nationals here, it’s big. It just goes to show everything we have here in Calgary.
“People from high schools, elementary and junior highs and even just the people of Calgary can come watch our homegrown athletes and see what they can do.”
Effah, who ran alongside Usain Bolt, the fastest man in the world, in the 200-metre race at the 2009 world championships in Berlin, settled for racing a group of elementary school kids at Glenmore Athletic Park on Wednesday.
The easy jog for Effah was part of a demonstration to promote the Canadian Track and Field championships from June 22 to 25 at the newly renovated Foothills Athletic Park.
More than 600 of Canada’s top athletes will be challenging for a spot on the national track and field team, which will compete at the world championships in Daegu, South Korea, from Aug. 27 to Sept. 4.
These things are all on Effah’s summer agenda, of course. But 2012 London is never too far from his train of thought.
“When I started track, that was one of my dreams,” he said. “That dream has become a reality, so I have to keep doing what I’m doing.
“My first year university, I took a really big step in training, weights, cardio, and I just started to improve huge. So, once I saw myself in the mix with the top Canadian guys when I was 18, I thought, three years from now, what’s stopping me in getting to the Olympics?”
In five years with the Dinos, Effah earned four consecutive Canadian Interuniversity Sport track MVP awards and rose meteorically to the top of the class among Canadian men.
Last year, he dropped his personal best to 10.22 seconds in the 100 metres in Edmonton and then shaved it to 10.06 last July at the NACAC under-23 championship in Florida.
However, Effah suffered a setback at the CIS nationals in Sherbrooke, Que., in March.
Wanting to finish his university career in style — and, also, aiming to claim his fourth straight 60-metre title — a strained quad caused him to miss the final by 0.03 seconds.
Because of the injury, Effah was forced to bow out of the 300 metres and the Dinos’ 4x200 relay.
“It was kind of disappointing,” said Effah, who’ll test his quad at the Caltaf Track Classic from June 10 to 12.
“It was my last year of university and I wanted to go out with a bang. But I’m being patient.
“To do that at that event is not ideal but at the same time, I’ve gotta keep going and keep training.
“I’m good, now. I’m ready to open and run the 100 in a couple of weeks, so we’ll see where I’m at. And hopefully, come nationals, I’ll be ready to defend.”
And, obviously, he wouldn’t mind putting on a show for the home crowd which hasn’t hosted the event since 1983.
Ditto for heptathlete Jessica Zelinka.
“We’re bringing track and field back to Calgary,” said the 29-year-old 2010 Commonwealth Games silver medallist. “We’re going to expose the sport to school kids and get people excited about it.
“It’s a big event for the national team athletes. I know they’ve gone to huge efforts to make this event run well and to get people come out and supporting us.
“Support means a lot to us.”