Tyson Gay, Machel Cedenio host elite track camp

THE world's second fastest man, American Tyson Gay, has joined forces with Trinidad and Tobago’s two-time World Championships medallist Machel Cedenio to host an elite track development camp at Skinner Park in San Fernando on August 15 and 16.

Gay, 42, a three-time World Championships gold medallist, has a personal best of 9.69 seconds over 100m, only bettered by Jamaican sprint phenom and world record holder Usain Bolt, who clocked a blistering 9.58 in Beijing.

Cedenio is a former national 400m record holder with 4x400 relay gold medals at the 2017 World Championships and 2019 World Relays. He was just shy of an Olympic gold medal after placing fourth at the 2016 Rio Games.

Gay said he was eager to impart his years of knowledge and experience to the next generation of TT’s track stars. Joining him at the camp will be Evans Gregory, a Pure Athletics assistant coach who also worked with Cedenio and currently works with reigning Olympic 100m champion Noah Lyles and TT’s new men's 400m record holder Jereem Richards.

Day one of the camp sprints off with intensive skills training. It begins with an inspirational session and mental recalibration and an afternoon physical session, showcasing different techniques and training styles.

“These sessions are a unique opportunity for participants to receive world-class coaching and mentorship,” Cedenio said at the event launch, held at City Hall in San Fernando on August 14.

On day two, they plan to transform Skinner Park into a “vibrant arena of sport” with a family-friendly environment consisting of activities, games and an exhibition football match between southern giants Presentation College San Fernando and St Benedict’s College.

Day two’s events are open to the public from 10 am to 5 pm.

The camp will host 120 athletes from various clubs and communities.

On his first time in Trinidad and Tobago, Gay said he was happy to share some of his expertise. He competed against and shared sporting relationships with former national sprinters such as Marc Burns, Aaron Armstrong and Kelly-Ann Baptiste, and was pleased to finally reach the homeland of his track friends.

“It’s an honour to be here. I thought I would have been here a long time ago because I’m really good friends with the people I named,” Gay said.

“TT has a history of medallists and have done well over the years in World Championships, Olympics etc. It feels good. I talk to several other guys and they always seem like they want to give back but don’t know where to start.

“It’s good that Machel has stepped up and is able to, while still running, grab kids’ attention and do things like this. I’m inspired to do this with him and he’s not even retired yet.

“It feels good to give back to Trinidad and see where sport can go in the next ten years; so I’m hoping that, even if it’s one person, I can inspire a kid to reach his or her full potential.”

The vision of the camp is to nurture and inspire the next generation of TT’s track and field athletes.

Cedenio’s manager Nevaun Fabien lauded the initiative. He said, “We believe the foundation of a strong and vibrant sports culture is built on the dedication, mentorship and guidance provided by those who have already reached the pinnacle of success. It’s not only about training but also creating an environment where young athletes can learn, grow and be motivated by some of the best in the world.”

Cedenio believes the time is right to host such an elite development camp and sees this initiative as a stepping stone for the Machel Cedenio Sporting Foundation.

“The journey has been tedious but we had a vision. In order to get your vision alive you have to go out there – and we did just that.

"We saw the gap in communities where kids are not interested in sports any more because they’re distracted by a lot of stuff. That’s because that’s all they’re seeing. We need to make all sports popular again, make kids proud they are sportsmen and women.”

Gay and Cedenio have a rich history training at the Adidas Training Centre in Orlando, Florida, where the TT athlete described the American as a mentor, who provided him with an extra boost of confidence to train harder.

The camp is being held in collaboration with the Ministry of Sport and Community Development and San Fernando City Corporation, and is a “testament of our dedication to bringing the highest level of training, knowledge and experience to our young athletes,” Cedenio added.

Also present were San Fernando mayor Robert Parris and councillor Riyad Hosein, who have lent support to this initiative.