Hughes targets worlds after shattering British 100m record
THE GUARDIAN – A few days after shattering Linford Christie’s 30-year-old British 100m record, sprinter Zharnel Hughes is busy recalibrating his sights towards new heights.
Hughes’s time of 9.83 seconds at the New York City Grand Prix last Saturday made him the fastest man on the planet this year, and a genuine contender for gold at the world championships in Budapest this summer. At the age of 27 he believes he is ready “to be part of the rumble”.
“They’ve seen what I am coming with, so they know that I’m not one to mess about with,” he says of his rivals. “I’m ready to compete, I’m excited and I’m enjoying myself.”
It is almost a decade since Hughes was hailed as the “next Usain Bolt” after switching allegiances to Britain from the Caribbean island of Anguilla as a teenager. But while a serious knee injury and some false starts in major events have hindered his progress, the sense is that he is coming into his prime.
Asked how he has kicked on, Hughes stresses that he has become a lot hungrier and only took two weeks off at the end of last season. He also credits the work of his coach, Glenn Mills, who used to train Bolt.
“Obviously going to Budapest being a contender will be exciting,” he says. “And once I’m going through the rounds, everything else is possible. You just need to be a part of the rumble – and if you can be patient and the most relaxed person in the field then anything is possible.”