The Tribune

By TENAJH SWEETING

Tribune Sports Reporter

tsweeting@tribunemedia.net

OLYMPIC bronze medallist Leevan “Superman” Sands made an appearance at the National Sports Awards on Saturday evening and expressed high hopes for the future of athletics in The Bahamas.

The men’s triple jump national record holder recently conducted a jumps clinic in conjunction with the fourth edition of the Red-Line Athletics’ Motivational Health and Wellness Seminar.

The top triple jumpman was grateful for the opportunity to pass on some of his knowledge in the field event to the participants in attendance.

“I wish it was done for me because a lot of them have coaches but I think they have not really interacted with people who have actually won medals. All Olympians should be coming home and doing free clinics for the youth of The Bahamas,” Sands said.

With regards to the talent he saw on display at the jumps clinic, the assistant jumps coach at Florida State University (FSU) said there were some talented athletes on display over the weekend.

“There are a few of them that really stood out so in the next few years I will be back here scouting. I saw potential,” said the national record holder.

Sands has endured a few setbacks during his illustrious track and field career, and most recently had the Courage Award named in his honour at the National Sports Awards.

He has faced obstacles including suspension, injuries and some pushback when he tried to join the coaching ranks overseas.

“When I first applied to a few schools like my alma mater, I was turned down and it was said that I had no coaching experience but to go from a small D1 school in Colorado and after two years get called from a school like FSU, it speaks wonders and I think it is only up from here,” he said.

The strides achieved in his two seasons as jumps coach has not only helped to improve the jumpers at FSU, but also attracted the likes of three-time national champion Kaiwan Culmer and NACAC under-23 (U23) silver medallist Charisma Taylor.

Both will train under the tutelage of Sands in preparation to qualify for the 2024 Paris Olympic Games. “I think for me moving in The Bahamas, it is a lot going on, I feel like when people train in the states, especially coming to FSU, it is a more controlled environment where everything is in one facility,

“He (Culmer) is in a controlled environment with a coach who has a lot of experience and competed in four Olympics. I just know what to look for and look at and with Charisma as well I think they are both in good hands,” he said.

The Bahamian triple jump legend has competed at four Olympic Games, including the 2004 Summer Olympic Games in Athens, Greece, 2008 Olympics in Beijing, China, 2012 Summer Olympics in London, England, and 2016 Summer Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. He shared his thoughts on the country’s Olympic chances ahead of next year’s multi-sport event in Paris, France.

“The teams have been a lot smaller than what we had, very small but impactful.

“We have some strong people like Shaunae who just came back a couple months after having a baby and Steven Gardiner, we have two top 400 metre runners,” he said.

Sands set the national record for the men’s triple jump with 17.59 metres for bronze at the Olympics in 2008.