The Tribune

By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Repoerter

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

BEIJING, China — After a long and gruelling collegiate season as a junior for Texas A&M, the fatigue factor got the best of Latario Collie-Minns.

It started last month at the Pan American Games in Toronto, Canada, where he failed to advance out of the preliminary rounds. After some much needed rest to recuperate, he had a chance to redeem himself at the 15th IAAF World Championships.

But in his global debut against some of the top competitors on the planet, Collie-Minns’ leap of 16.21 metres or 53-2 1/4 was only good enough for 23rd place overall. Collie-Minns was hoping to join national record holder Leevan ‘Superman’ Sands in a two-man showdown for Team Bahamas in the final.

“It was a good experience for me,” said Collie-Minns of his debut at the global meet. “It was a good experience for me, but I had a long college season, so I’m not at all disappointed.”

The 20-year-old twin brother of Lathone Collie-Minns opened up the competition with his best mark. But on his second attempt, he only cleared 16.10m as he motioned to coach Peter Pratt about a slight back injury.

On his final attempt as the last jumper in the competition, he scratched and that sealed the 12th and final spot in the final for Sands.

“It was pretty normal for me because most of the guys I competed with in college,” Collie-Minns said.

But Collie-Minns said he was glad to have had the experience of competing with Sands on the world stage.

“He was like my twin brother. I had someone to feed off,” said Collie-Minns of Sands, who brought a lot of intensity back to the competition.

On Sands’ comeback, Collie-Minns said he is just as in awe as everybody else because of his impressive comeback. Collie-Minns indicated that he hopes to be right there on the sidelines cheering him on when he competes in the final tonight.

Despite his early exit, Sands had nothing but high praises for Collie-Minns.

“I already told Latario he’s young. I told him his time is going to come,” Sands said. “I told him my first Olympics, I didn’t make the finals. My second Olympics, I won a medal. So I talk to Latario every day. I always encourage them to do their best. I know he’s going to be good. They are going to take over in a couple years from me. And I will be there for them until they get their Olympic medal. I will be there for all of them.”

No doubt as he heads back to continue his collegiate year at Texas A&M where he was the NCAA triple jump runner-up, Collie-Minns will use this experience to help prepare him for his first Olympic experience next year in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Hopefully, he will be be able to reunite with Sands again on the runway for another 1-2 punch for Team Bahamas.

The first step, however, is for Collie-Minns to join an elite field of Bahamians, who includes Sands at Auburn, Philip Robins at Southern Illinois University, Steve Hanna twice at the University of Texas at El Paso and Frank Rutherford at the University of Houston, who captured NCAA outdoor titles, before he closes out his senior year of eligibility next year.