Chasing Seconds and Olympic Dreams on the Track- Kirani James

Here is a bonus trailer of Nutmeg Nation, with special Guest Kirani James.

Kirani James made history when he won the gold medal at the Olympic Games in London 2012.  James won silver in 2016 in Rio, and Bronze at the Tokyo Games.

His coach Harvey Glance, three-time Olympian and 1976 Olympic gold medal winner, Glance was a four-time NCAA champion at Auburn from 1976-79.  Harvey is known for being the greatest sprinter in track and field at Auburn University.

CORRECTION the Museum in Grenada is called the Underwater Sculpture Museum, not the UNDERGROUND Museum.

If you would like to know more about Kirani James please check out  https://www.kiranijames.com/
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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
When you're on the track and you're ready to run
and the gun goes off.
What do you think of?

Speaker 2 (00:07):
What do I think of?

Speaker 1 (00:10):
Yeah, what is it?
What is like the gun goes offand then you just go.
But do you have a vision?
Like it's very nerve-wracking,like for us, who's watching you
on the world stage?
You know what I mean.
And when that gun goes off,it's like I'm an athlete myself
and I ran the 200 and the 100 inschool.
When that gun goes off, it'slike, you know, do your diet at

(00:31):
that point?
So you know.

Speaker 2 (00:33):
Yeah, I mean, it's similar, it never changes.
But I think for me, you justwant to focus on your race,
focus on what you're supposed todo, especially in that moment.

Speaker 1 (00:42):
Yeah.

Speaker 2 (00:42):
Is you want to, whatever strategy or whatever
focus or whatever plan that youhave.
I think you want to focus onthat and execute into the best
of your ability.
Now, where it gets interestingis like throughout the lead up,
throughout the games or themeets, and all that you always
want to go, for me, is alwaysabout focusing on just trying to

(01:06):
represent, you know, everyonethat's affiliated with me,
whether it's stakeholders,whether it's family, whether
it's community all that you wantto go out and do your best and
try to make them proud.
So, yeah, leading up to it,yeah, obviously you want you
thinking about those thingsright as to okay, how am I going
to perform?

(01:26):
How are people you knowfollowing the races?
Are people knowing you knowwhat channel it is, what time it
is, to make sure that everyonecan tune in and do all those
things?
So, yeah, leading up is always alittle bit more, I would say,
not nerve wrecking, but is a bitmore surreal when you kind of

(01:48):
look at everything that allthat's there in stake and how
much you want to represent andto kind of make everyone proud,
especially in that aspect, inthat small aspect as well not a
small aspect, but an aspect insport where you have something

(02:08):
where people could galvanize andpeople could come together and
so forth.
So sometimes, yeah, it feelslike a little bit of a
responsibility to go out andalways kind of perform at a
certain level, because you knowthe expectation is always there.
So, yeah, going into thosemeetings is a lot more

(02:28):
interesting in terms of, youknow, navigating those, all
those emotions and all that.
So yeah, but the real time isfocus on the plan, you know, and
just try to execute that inthat moment for that 45 or
whatever seconds.

Speaker 1 (02:45):
Yeah, it's interesting because you know you
train for four years for thatone moment in time and it's like
anything can happen on the dayof it could be the wind is a
little too strong, it could, youknow.
You have so many people fall,starts and all that.

(03:07):
But going back from thebeginning, you were 14 when you
won your first race, so how didthat feel?
Did you even realize that youknow this is something that you
could do professionally?

Speaker 2 (03:20):
Yeah, I remember I was in.
There was a game called the CUTGames Caribbean Union of
Teachers Games.
I think that was that year.
It was in St Lucia, I think,and that was my first time
actually leaving the country ona plane, on a Liat Dash, all of
that.
That flight fell like 10 hours,you know, even though it was

(03:41):
just right in St Lucia.
So that was my first time ofgoing out and competing
internationally and I think Iwas about 13 at the time and
just having that experience, youknow, especially when you look,
you see on TV, you seeJamaicans, you see Trinidad,

(04:01):
folks from Trinidad and Tobago,barbados, bahamas, you see them
all on TV and they were like,okay, well, you know, hopefully,
especially at that level, maybesomebody could get, somebody
could get there right.

Speaker 1 (04:17):
Yeah.

Speaker 2 (04:17):
And you know, just looking at it going out there
and competing.
I think it was a games whereit's almost like you're doing
all the events.
I remember the I was doing the400, the 200, I think I won the
400.
I got second in the 200, theJamaican beat me in the 200.
And I guess I won the 400.
So I was competing against,like you said, all those guys

(04:39):
from Jamaica, trinidad, bahamas,barbados, all the other
Caribbean countries.
And I think it was from thatmoment where it was like okay,
like like I'm at that level interms of just natural ability,
like we're all at that level.
So now it's about just kind offocusing and just using that as
a platform and a springboard toto prepare me to try to do well.

(05:02):
So from there, you know, I thinkI was, I think in 2006, my
first year in my hometown clubcalled Speed Soul.
That was my club club in Guar.
The coach at that time was acoach about Joseph and he
coached me throughout my whole,my whole youth, youth career.

(05:24):
And from there, from coming outof that games, I was like OK,
let me start trade.
Taking athletics very seriously.
You know, I'm not going to playtoo much football anymore, I'm
not going to play too muchcricket, no, not too much
basketball.
I'm just going to focus and zonein on this one, on this one
sport, and I think that's that'swhen he kind of hit me and kind

(05:45):
of like, I said, you know, openmy eyes, not just to win,
whether it's to the Olympics oranything, but how many
opportunities he could open,like coming up to the US,
getting scholarships and all ofthat.
So it was, it was I would saythat was the first time I had,
you know, where I felt like, ok,this could be, this could be

(06:06):
something, something great.
And then we mentioned 2007 atWorld Youth.
I think I was 14 at the timeand I was running against, you
know, athletes that were 16, 17,right.

Speaker 1 (06:19):
So yeah, you're 14, you said.
You said were you 13 or 14?

Speaker 2 (06:23):
I was 14 in 2007.

Speaker 1 (06:25):
Oh my goodness, wow I was 14, going on 15.
Yeah.

Speaker 2 (06:30):
I think that was in Australia, Czech Republic, where
we had the world.

Speaker 1 (06:33):
Wow, Czech Republic.
Oh my goodness.

Speaker 2 (06:36):
So yeah, so I was competing against all those guys
that maybe, as I was young,maybe it's just some naivety in
it, but I was like I don't knowhow all this is going to play
out.
I don't have to think too much,just run.
And yeah, and I had goodperformances.
I got a silver medal in thatworld youth game, that 14.
So, like I said, all of thatwas just more evidence of you

(06:59):
know, this could be somethingthat could be really good at.
Yeah, and from there at homeyou have character games, you
have CBS First Sports, you haveIntercal.
Intercal is always a big dealin Grenada.

Speaker 1 (07:11):
Yeah.

Speaker 2 (07:12):
So, like I said, you just kind of go from strength to
strength with there.
But, you know, it was a lot offactors that came into play, a
lot of people that were in mylife at certain points that
really helped me, whether it'sjust advice, whether it's just,
you know, like I say, with myclub, all of that stuff.
So there's a lot of, you know,people that are influential in

(07:34):
terms of making me reach whereI'm at today.
So, yeah, it's a wonderfulexperience and, looking back, I
can only be grateful and humblethat I've had all of that in my
life.

Speaker 1 (07:46):
Yeah, no, it's amazing to watch you and you
know, for me, I've been watchingthe Olympics since I was a
child and I've always lovedtrack.
It's one of the most popularevents at the Olympics.
When we talk about the summergames, you hear the announcers.
There's like we know you werewaiting for the track event.

(08:08):
Like you know, this is it.
It's because we're looking atthe times.
Who's gonna beat the times?
Like even for you this year, Ibelieve, from what I heard, I
don't know if it's true thatUsain Bolt is gonna be in Paris
watching the games.
You know, like he's beencompeting and this is the first
time he's actually gonna be aspectator, so I'm pretty sure a

(08:29):
lot of people are gonna bewatching.
It's the world, right.
But going back to what you weresaying about, you know the
people who were part of yourjourney to where you are now and
not realizing it, because whenyou're young, you're like I
can't believe this is happening.
When did you realize?
I think it was.
Was it before you made it toLondon that you realized that

(08:54):
you know that there's somepotential for you to make an
impact or even compete at theinternational level?
You know what I mean.
Like against the world, youknow, at the world stage.

Speaker 2 (09:07):
Yeah, like I said, that was always.
Like I said since 2006, 2007,.
There was always a potential.

Speaker 1 (09:14):
Right.

Speaker 2 (09:14):
You know potential, because you never know what's
gonna happen.

Speaker 1 (09:17):
Yeah.

Speaker 2 (09:18):
But you nurture that talent, it's always gonna
dictate how far that talent goes.
So even then there were evenconversations about, you know,
the Olympics or WorldChampionships and all that.
So it was always, I wouldn'tsay expectation, but it always.
You know the potential of allthat and if you remember, like

(09:39):
I've always, you know, in 2008,you know, I was in World Junior.
I got a silver medal there too.
In 2009, I was in World Youththe second time in 2017, and I
won the 400, won the 200 there.
2010, world Junior I won the 400there.
So there was always like a very, I would say prolific

(10:04):
progression with me when itcomes to, you know, going from
the youth level going up to thesenior level and 2011,.
You know, when I went to WorldChampionships, you know, and I
won that, and then the Olympicswas following the following year
.
Obviously, there's even moreexpectation.
So, like I said, it's alwaysbeen there, you know, even when

(10:26):
I was in World Junior it's in2008,.
I remember I was competingagainst guys that were already
in college.

Speaker 1 (10:33):
Wow, that's so amazing.

Speaker 2 (10:36):
Yeah, so when I went there in like 2010, and I went
to University of Alabama, like Iwas seeing some of the same
guys, oh, my goodness Againstyou in 2008.
So I said it's always been there.
Like I said, I'm just gratefulthat I've had a lot of people
you know in my life to help me.
Like I said, my club coach inRenata and I was with my college

(10:59):
coach and professional coach,harvey Glantz, you know, and
then just so much people in mycommunity that helped me and
even, like I said then, theexpectation and the support was
always there.
So, yeah, it wasn't just youknow, like you know, you just
aiming for one year in 2012 orwhatnot.

(11:19):
There was always a niceprogression, going from level to
university, right Then.