The Tribune

By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bsetubbs@tribujnemedia.net

SPRINTER Anthonique Strachan has her sights set on the World Championships in August and she’s already starting to make a statement to her rivals going into the biggest global international meet this year.

Strachan, in continuing to turn her career around after she was plagued by a series of injuries a few years ago, placed second in the women’s 100 metres at the Oslo Diamond League on Thursday in another lifetime best achievement.

Her time of 10.92 seconds came behind Ivory Coast’s Marie-Josee Ta Lou, the winner in a world leading and meet record of 10.75. But for Strachan, it improved on her previous personal best of 10.98 that she ran at last year’s World Championships at the Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon where she ended up as a semifinalist in the century. 

“I’m very content to get a personal best despite making some mistakes in the race,” said Strachan, who ran on the inside of the field in lane two and made up enough ground in the middle of the race to hold onto her spot. 

In the process, she held off her Jamaican training partner Shericka Jackson, who ran 10.95 for third. 

Also in the race were Great Britain’s duo of Dina Asher-Smith, fourth in her season’s best of 10.98, the same time for Daryll Neita, who joined her compatriot in a photo finish for fourth place. 

“It’s a great confidence boost to best some of these women so I’m excited and I hope to run some more PBs this season,” said Strachan, the only Bahamian to compete in the meet. 

The 29-year-old could face these same competitors at the World Championships in Budapest, Hungary from August 19-27th, where she hinted that she could contest the sprint double for the first time in her career on the senior circuit. 

“I may run the double in Budapest,” she stated. “Medals are nice, but I always want to take stock of the progress that I’ve made and take the Champs step by step.”

She’s also still looking for her first major individual medal on the international stage since capturing the sprint double at the World Junior Championships in 2012, Not only has she already dipped under the World Championships qualifying standard of 11.15 in the 100m, but she also did the mark of 22.8 in the 200m when she ran a personal best of 22.15 at the Moulay Abdellah in Rabat on May 28th. 

Before she decides on whether or not she will go for the sprint double in Budapest, Strachan will be coming home to go after the feat at the Bahamas Association of Athletic Associations’ National Championships, scheduled for July 5-7 at the Thomas A. Robinson National Stadium.