The Tribune

By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@trivbunemedia.net

KEN Mullings’ global debut turned out to be a Bahamian record-breaking performance as he had to settle for 17th place overall in the men’s decathlon at the 2022 World Championships in Eugene, Oregon.

The first Bahamian to compete in the gruelling two-day, 10-event competition over the final two days of competition in the Hayward Field posted a total of 7,866 points to smash his previous mark of 7,734 that he established on June 27, 2021 at Thomas A Robinson National Stadium.

In closing out the competition yesterday in the 1,500m, the 25-year-old four-time national champion clocked a season’s best of four minutes and 52.85 seconds for 16th place overall. Kevin Mayer of France was the winner of the 1,500m in 4:41.44.

Mayer emerged as the world champion with 8,816, while Pierce LePage of Canada got the silver with 8,701 and American Zachary Ziemek clinched the bronze with 8,676 points. Estonia’s Maicel Uibo, the wife of Bahamian women’s 400m gold medallist Shaunae Miller-Uibo, was seventh with 8,425 points.

“I would describe this performance as damn near close to perfect,” Mullings said. “I had PBs (personal best) and SBs (season’s best) straight through my final day. The only event that was off was my long jump. “But all around, I can’t complain. This was the best performance I’ve ever done and the competition was there to help pull me though, especially the running events in the 100m, the hurdles, 400 and the 1,500m. These events helped pull me through.”

Mullings’ personal coach Ednal Rolle got a chance to travel to Eugene just in time for the competition and he could only state that “it feels good” when asked about Mullings’ historic national record breaking performance.

“It was a bitter sweet moment,” Rolle summed up.

Just before the 1,500m during the final session on the final day of competition, Mullings turned in another season’s best in getting sixth in his group in the javelin with 186-9 (56.92m) for sixth overall for 692 points.

Mullings opened the early session of the final day of competition by taking the tape in the 110m hurdles for fifth overall with a personal best of 14.02 for 972 points.

He came back and got ninth in his group for 124th overall in the discus with 140-1 (42.70m) and closed out it out with 11th place in his group and 17th overall with a season’s best of 14-9 (4.50m) in the pole vault.

At the end of the first day, Mullings sat in 17th place with a total of 4,120 points.

He opened the competition with ninth place in the 100m in 10.83 for 899 points.

However he slipped down the radar with 17th place in the long jump with a season’s best of 22-10 (6.96m) for 804 points and 19th in the shot put with 45-4 1/2 (13.83m) for 718 points.

However, he got back on track with a tie for seventh place in the high jump with 6-8 ¾ (2.05m) for 850 points, but ended the day in 17th in the 400m in 49.25 for second in his heat for 849 points.