The Tribune

By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

Leevan 'Superman' Sands, preparing for the completion of his athletic career, is now the latest Bahamian to secure a track and field coaching job in the United States.

Sands, the most decorated Bahamian triple jumper, has been named as an assistant coach at the University of Northern Colorado with responsibilities for jumps, according to Wayne Angel, the director of track and field and Cross Country, yesterday.

"We had a very talented pool of applicants, but Leevan stood head and shoulders above them all," Angel said. "His passion, drive and vision are the qualities that really stood out to me during the hiring process.

"Our jumpers and multi-eventers are blessed to have the opportunity to be coached and mentored by Leevan. With the hiring of Leevan to complete our staff, it is time to get busy and work on winning some championships."

Sands, the Bahamian national record holder with a leap of 17.59 metres or 57-feet, 8 1/2-inches in winning the bronze medal at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China, is eagerly looking forward to a 21-hour drive today with his wife and three children from Auburn to Greeley, Colorado, to pursue a long-time dream.

"I feel great because it's a great opportunity for me to get my foot in the door," said Sands, who has spent the past 17 years in Auburn where he's done some private coaching in addition to training and competing for Auburn University and as an elite athlete.

"I have the experience because I have been in track and field all my life and that has helped to prepare me for this moment. It's a great day because I am another Bahamian who will get to coach in the NCAA at a division one school."

When the job was offered to him a few weeks ago, Sands said he was appreciative to senior associate athletic director Rachel Walton and Angel for affording him the opportunity to take the next step in his athletic career.

"I've had the chance to coach a number of athletes in Auburn and when I told them that I got this job, a lot of them just broke down and cried," said Sands, who started to operate the Sands Pro Athletics Club three years ago. "I wanted to get a coaching job like this at Auburn or a school in the area, but things didn't work out."

Some of the athletes whom Sands coached in his spare time went on to Mississippi State and Tennessee State and one of his elite athletes, Imani Oliver, is now the third best female triple jumper in the United States.

As a bronze medallist at the Olympics and the IAAF World Championships (2003 in Paris, France), Commonwealth Games (2002 in Manchester, England), NCAA Championships for Auburn University (2004), Sands is hoping to get ready for his last hurrah in Tokyo, Japan at the 2020 Olympics, his fifth appearance at the four-yearly games.

"Me and the coach already have an agreement, so he's just going to support me in that endeavour," said Sands, who worked his way back from what looked like a career-ending injury at the Olympics in London, England, in 2012.

"So we will see how best we can get that to work, while I try to get the athletes at UNC for the NCAA Championships. So I have my work cut out for me, but I am looking forward to it."

Sands, who turned 38 on August 16, said he just wants to continue to keep the 242 on the map. The immediate past athletes representative in the Bahamas Association of Athletic Associations said he intends to make the best of this opportunity.

"I will be recruiting heavily for Bahamians to come to Colorado and compete," he said. "Hopefully I can recruit them to where I am so they can get into the system and make the contribution.

"I really don't like the cold there, but I know I will do very well. I just want the best for me and my family as well. We're looking forward to making a change after staying in Auburn, which was our second home away from home."

Among the list of accomplishments on Sands' résumé are the IAAF Diamond League title he won in 2012 and a silver at the Pan American Games (2015 in Toronto, Canada) and at the World Athletics Final in 2009.

He also captured the Central American and Caribbean Championships' title in 2003, 2005 and 2008, as well as the bronze in 2005 and the gold at the CAC Games in 2010.

Sands also enjoyed a 12-year stranglehold of the Bahamas national title in the men's triple jump from 2001 to 2017.

Additionally, the former basketball player at Temple Christian Academy also produced some outstanding performances in the long jump, having posted a lifetime best of 8.13m (26-8 1/4) in 2005 and 8.28m wind-aided (27-2) in 2003.