Broadbell: It’s all because of God and His timing

Rasheed Broadbell went from running 13.20 seconds in the 110 metres hurdles this year to becoming the third Jamaican in history to dip below the 13-seconds barrier in the event, but he says this was all possible because of God and His timing.

“All season I’ve been saying I’m in the best shape of my present session, so getting the sub 13 seconds mark was probably a surprise to a lot, but (my) coach and I knew it was going to come somewhere down the line,” Broadbell said.

With his personal best of 12.99 set last month, nine hundredths of a second outside of the national record of 12.90 set by Omar McLeod in 2017, some track and field enthusiasts are confident that Broadbell can go much faster and will set a new national record soon.

However, the 22 year-old says he is in no hurry to achieve this milestone.

“I mean, I don’t worry about times. I’m young at this point in my career. I think I have enough time to try and achieve that goal but that’s not my main aim at this point,” Broadbell said.

In the meantime, he said, he will continue to put in the work as he trusts and waits on God to achieve his athletic goals.

“Without God, we aren’t anything, so, for me, it’s all on His timing and His doing. I have a strong faith in believing in God, so, once I apply myself correctly, leave everything else to Him,” he said.

Broadbell went undefeated this August and among his victories was the Commonwealth Games gold medal in the sprint hurdle event.

“It felt really great hitting that goal for this season, just grateful for the journey,” the hurdler said.

However, he was not as successful at his first World Championships in July, as he failed to advance to the final.

Given his achievements after that event, will Broadbell do better at next year’s World Championships in Budapest, Hungary?

“Only time can tell,” the Commonwealth Champion said.

There are still other major titles to claim in 2022 as Broadbell is set to line up in the Diamond League finals in Zurich, Switzerland on September 7-8. But, as for winning that event, he said he has no expectations.

“I mean, at this point, whatever the result, is I’m grateful,” the St Jago High School past student said. “It’s truly a great feeling to even be in the line-up with all the great athletes. So, whatever I get, I believe that’s what God had in store for me. And everything is a learning process, so I can learn and better any result I receive.”

As his successes of the season are being highlighted, Broadbell said he does not want to count out the many obstacles he had to hurdle over and the lessons that came with those setbacks.

“I learned to be patient and trust God and all His doing (as) this season has been tough with all the setbacks. I was going through a rough early season and to now get a massive PB (personal best) in such a short space of time, it’s just all timing and trusting. So hopefully next season will be greater,” Broadbell said.