COLUMBIA, SC (WIS) -
The Olympics will soon hit close to home for Gamecock Nation, as two
former Gamecocks go for gold in the men's and women's hurdles events.
Before
their former collegiate coach headed to London to cheer on the athletes, I met
up with USC Track and Field Head Coach Curtis Frye to take an inside look at
the sport.
"You
can't be a hurdler without working," said Coach Frye, first instructing me to
pick up the hurdles on the sidelines of the track.
It
was clear from the beginning that slacking was not an option with Coach Frye,
but it was also clear that it's that work ethic that develops hurdle champions.
"There
are two types of hurdles," said Frye. Gamecock nation has two former athletes,
each running in a respective event in London this year. "The 400 meter
which is all the way around [the track] and Leshinda Demus, one of Carolina's
best and last year's world champion and American record holder, she runs around
the track.
Then
Jason Richardson, who's SEC champion and NCAA champion, who's going to be
running in the 110 meter hurdles and that's the length of a football field."
As
if learning about the two former gamecocks turned Olympic athletes was not
enough pressure, I also learned Coach Frye has been coaching Olympic athletes
since 1988.
"Every
four years when the Olympic Games come around it's big for the track and field
program," said Miquel Jacobs with the University's Track and Field Department.
"[That's] because everyone knows that Coach Frye is going to have a lot of
former athletes out there."
That
being said, my next question was with Coach Frye's ‘track' record, no pun
intended, what does it take to be a hurdles champion?
"Flexibility,
core strength and just general athletics," said Coach Frye. Frye says that
combination is even better when it's mixed with an athlete who has a lot of
power and is tall and slim in proportion to height.
Coach
said if I really wanted to see what it was like to be a hurdler, I'd have to
start from the beginning and work my way up.
You
can see the whole process in the video above!
In
all, I spent more than an hour with Coach out on the track. It was during that
time, I realized why he had so many successful athletes. He corrected and guided
me, while instilling the will to push harder and try again.
Coach
said when it comes down to it hurdles are simply a dress rehearsal for life.
"Life
is a group of hurdles and you have to keep overcoming," said Frye. "And as soon
as you're over one, something else comes up. You can't look into the past
because you've got to be prepared for the next hurdle. So if you don't forget
it and move on…then what happens? You run into the next hurdle. Then you've got
to get up and race and you're behind, so you can't make a mistake and then
dwell on it. You gotta keep charging forward."
There's
no doubt that advice is probably a big reason that Frye has had nearly 20
athletes in the Olympic Games.
If
you want to see Lashinda Demus or Jason Richardson compete in this year's
games. Below is the schedule of their events courtesy of the USC Track and
Field Department. In all, there are three former Gamecocks competing in Track
and Field events. Natasha Hastings will look to defend her 2008 Gold Medal in
the 4X400 meter relay.
(All times in Western European time – 5hrs ahead of EST)
Jason Richardson - Men's 110m Hurdles
Round 1-
Tuesday, Aug 7th @ 10:10am
Semifinals-
Wednesday, Aug 8th @ 7:15pm
Final-
Wednesday, Aug 8th @ 9:15pm
Lashinda Demus - Women's 400m Hurdles
Round 1-
Sunday, Aug 5th @ 7:00pm
Semifinals-
Monday, Aug 6th @ 8:15pm
Final-
Wednesday, Aug 8th @ 8:45pm
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