Leap of faith - Parchment hell-bent on gold in what may be his final Olympics

National sprint hurdler Hansle Parchment is desperate to secure a gold medal at this year’s Olympic Games in Japan, Tokyo.

This is because it could be the last Games of his career.

He says whether there will be an Olympics this year is debatable, but he is keeping his hopes up that everything will go smoothly for him to be able to compete among the best hurdlers in the world.

“Depending on preparations and how I respond to it, I will decide if I push towards another Olympic Games,’” he said.

Parchment said that because of this uncertainty, he is pushing to get the gold medal so that he can leave a legacy behind.

“I would like to be known as one of the best in the 110m hurdles event,” he said.

Parchment said he knows this year’s Olympics will be very different from the others because there will be an absence of fans cheering him on during his race, but he still has to remain focused on the race for him to achieve his goal.

Parchment, 30 years old, became the first Jamaican to win an Olympic medal in the 110m hurdles when he won bronze at the London Games in 2012.

“I am working to achieve the top spot at the Games,” he said. “To capture the gold this year is one of my main aims.”

While Parchment previously held the national record in the 110m hurdles, which he achieved in 2014, and took silver at the World Athletics Championships in Beijing in 2015, he has not had the best of times recently because of a number of injuries.

But he says those are now behind him, and he is confident about his condition.

“I would like to say I’m fully recovered,” he said.

Parchment says he has been training as normal, and the COVID-19 pandemic has not really affected his preparations for Tokyo.

“Training is pretty normal for the most part, so preparation is geared towards being ready to compete at optimum level by time the Olympic Games kick off,” he said.

Sharla Williams