Tyson Gay raises his game - IAAF Magazine
Monday 5 February 2007
With personal bests of 9.84 and 19.68 set during an awesome summer season, Tyson Gay has placed himself as one of the best sprinters of the present and the future. His next ambition is to double at the World Championships and Olympic Games.
By Michelle Schmitt
Friends and strangers alike frequently ask Tyson Gay what he does for a living. When he tells them he runs professionally, they mentally scratch their heads and then quickly ask him if he’s run at the Olympics. He smiles and explains he hopes to one day, but first he must run successfully in the World Championships, the World Cup, the Pan American Games, in the U.S. and Europe, honing his craft.
Missing the 2004 Olympics Trials due to injury, Gay made up for lost time the past two seasons showing the world he is serious about his chosen discipline. Serious enough that he finished the 2006 season ranked second only to Jamaica’s Asafa Powell in the IAAF’s overall rankings finishing ahead of Jeremy Wariner, Kenenisa Bekele and Saif Saaeed Shaheen.
Gay attributes his success this year to prayer and staying healthy by training smart.
“Every year I’ve had nagging injuries so I wasn’t able to run to my full potential,” said Gay, a native of Lexington, Kentucky, who trains in Fayetteville, Arkansas.
“This has been a more complete season. My coach Lance Brauman has been with me long enough that he knows my body,” continued Gay, who clocked a 9.88 in the World Cup 100m final - the second-fastest time in the history of the competition to Barbados’ Odadele Thompson’s 9.87 in 1998. “He knows how I will feel the day after a hard practice or race and because of that, he can adjust my training. After running in the Southeastern Conference, NCAA Regionals, NCAA Championships and Nationals, I have learned how to prepare for big races and to train smart.”
In addition to listening to his coach and training partner Wallace Spearmon this season, he also collected training tips from more experienced professional athletes as well.
“Terrence Trammell talked to me about getting massages now so when I get older my body won’t break down. Getting those massages and taking ice baths have helped me a lot,” said Gay. “I was a little bit young in college. I was just running, having fun and taking classes. But now running really is my job. Terrence taught me I have to take care of my body like I take care of a car – change the oil and everything.”
Gay also received a few tips from 1996 Olympic 400m Hurdles medallist Calvin Davis. “Calvin talked to me about not changing the way I train each year. He told me not to practice too much and not over do it, like lifting a whole bunch of weights because it’s a big year. You have to take care of your body to be successful,” said Gay.
Many considered 2005 a breakout year for Gay, but add this past August and September to his resume and you might call 2006 a smash-out year. Currently considered to be the world’s most complete all-around sprinter, Gay ran under 10.0 this season six times, including a personal-best 9.84 in Zurich on 18 August. He finished the year ranked No. 2 in the 100m behind Powell. Gay’s personal best prior to 2006 was 10.06.
Add to the mix a personal-best 19.68 in the 200m and Gay finished No. 3 in the 200m rankings this season – third only behind the USA’s Xavier Carter’s 19.63 and Wallace Spearmon’s 19.65. The US trio ran the top seven times in the 200m this season, with four of those seven times belonging to Gay. Gay’s personal-best of 19.68 was tied for the third-fastest time ever.
“I want to run faster next year in the 200m,” said Gay. “If I work on my 200m start my 100m will get faster. I think my coach was surprised I ran as fast as I did in the 100m this year because he didn’t think I lifted enough.”
The track world has to believe in Gay, in part because his practices are as tough as his races due to his training partner, Wallace Spearmon. Gay points out that the reason why they are perfect training partners is because he gets out quickly and Spearmon gets out slow.
“We are so competitive at practice some days that coach has to separate us,” said Gay. “I want to run a certain time and it’s great because I have someone to challenge me daily and help me stay on top of my game. Wallace is a hard worker and I try to be a hard worker, too. He is one of the top two sprinters in the 200m and I don’t have any choice to stay on top of my game and it’s great to do that with him.”
When Spearmon and Gay leave the track, the competition doesn’t stop there. Each is trying to top the other in everything they do with so much time spent together off the track.
“We compete in everything, but it’s all fun and games,” said Gay. “We play a lot of video games on Wallace’s big projection screen at his house. Even go-cart riding in Arkansas gets competitive. Warm ups, drills - it’s all fun and games, but it’s competitive.”
Gay looks for the twosome to lead a young, but very talented American team in the next few years. Gay is disappointed so many fine American performances were overshadowed this year by talk of drugs. “We have a lot of young clean kids who go out there and do it the right way,” said Gay. “Drugs are the easy way out. In America we have a lot of young guys and girls who are coming back this winter to train harder than ever. We believe we can do it by training hard and not using steroids.”
“I hope track fans will forgive the USA because they give us so much support all over the world, especially in Europe,” said Gay. “Drugs are not good for the sport. The fans in Europe and other parts of the world pay us to come over and run fast. They don’t want to have to say that guy is dirty later. We need to step up to the plate and put up on really good shows.”
“Powell is younger than I am. Xavier is maybe 21 years old. Wallace is 22. I feel old at 24. Sanya Richards, Lashinda Demus – even some young girls in high school – there will be a lot of new faces in 2008 and they will be young faces,” said Gay.
Running in Europe has been a real eye-opener for Gay. A race that sticks out in his mind was the 200m race he and Spearmon ran in London in 2005 when they both ran 19’s. One thing he’s learned in the last year: when you run fast in Europe – whether you have any medals or not – the fans remember you. “They really appreciate good times, fast times in Europe,” said Gay. “The crowds are just amazing.”
Gay got some well-deserved rest in October before returning to Arkansas to begin training for 2007 at the beginning of November. While at home in Lexington, Gay visited his high school coach, Coach Northington at Lafayette High School; hit his favourite fishing hole with his grandfather Matt Gay; and spent time helping his five-year-old daughter Trinity with her homework. Gay knows 2007 won’t be time for games – it’s time to get serious because next season is important if he is going to accomplish his goals of running both the 100m and 200m at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
“I will test it out next year at the USA Championships,” said Gay, who won the 2004 NCAA 100m title. “If I can double at the World Championships next year then I think I will try to double at the Olympics the following year. And I would definitely love to run the 4x100 relay at the Olympics as well. It’s crazy, but sometimes I think more about running that than the 100 or 200 metres. I take a lot of pride in running relays.”
Gay was honoured to run the anchor leg of the USAs 4x100m relay at the World Cup, pointing out that with little practice, but a fun heart, the four-some managed to win the title. “At the World Cup this year we said let’s go out and have fun,” said Gay. “We put it together and we ran the third fastest time in history. We just had fun and that’s how I believe we had success.”
Not a Jon Drummond-type personality, Gay is known as being low-key. A self-proclaimed religious person, Gay believes the reason he runs is for God. He believes his job is to help bring people closer to God and to show people that if they believe, they can do so many things with their talents. “I love the fame that comes along with running, but I thank God for it,” said Gay.
Thanking God is part of Gay’s pre and post-game ritual. “I have a lot of faith and I believe in my talent and ability,” said Gay. “I hope that people see that faith in me. When someone asks me why I run, why I love it, I hope they understand that I truly believe in God and owe my success to him. I hope they will see that if I believe I can win a medal in the Olympics or set a World record, then they will understand what they can do by believing and having faith.”
Gay understands making the Olympic team and winning a medal isn’t done by saying one prayer, doing a set of drills in practice or running a race. It’s a maturation process; one Gay hopes to continue to improve on every day.
Published in 2006 Yearbook
