The Sprint Hurdles: Parchment and Camacho-Quinn for the Win
by Steve McGill
While the sprint hurdles didn’t provide the types of fireworks that we saw in the long hurdles, we still saw some very competitive races and exciting performances. On the men’s side, things were a little wacky, as the two hurdlers whom I felt had the best chance to earn an upset victory over Grant Holloway–Omar McLeod and Orlando Ortega–never lined up to race. And then Holloway was indeed upset by veteran Hansle Parchment, who I felt had a chance to medal but didn’t expect to win the gold. On the women’s side, things went pretty much as expected at the top of the heap, as Jasmine Camacho-Quinn won the gold and Keni Harrison finished second. Camacho-Quinn had consistently been the best hurdler in the world throughout 2021, so her victory came as no surprise. Harrison, the victor at the US Olympic Trials, earned the silver, while the only mild surprise being Megan Tapper grabbing the bronze. Let’s take a look at the women’s race first:
[am4show not_have=’g5;’]
[/am4show][am4guest]
[/am4guest][am4show have=’g5;’]
Heading into the meet, there was no doubt that Camacho-Quinn was the favorite. She was the only woman who had run under 13.40 this year, and she had done so on more than one occasion. A tall, strong hurdler, Camacho-Quinn is also a very efficient hurdler who takes full advantage of her height. Her lead leg is quick and precise with no extraneous horizontal extension, and her lead arm stays quick and low as well. A disappointing development in the women’s hurdles was the fact that Brianna McNeal (formerly Rollins) was not in Tokyo. After finishing a close second at the US Trials in June while a drug charge was still in arbitration, her four-year ban was upheld shortly after the Trials ended. I don’t see how this makes sense for anybody. If you knew you weren’t gonna let her run at the Games, why did you let her run at the Trials? And from McNeal’s perspective, a four-year ban seems excessive when considering she never tested positive, but I don’t want to go too far into that topic in this article. Suffice it to say that having one of the best hurdles in the world banned from competition took away some of the hyped-ness of the event at the Games.
As for Harrison, whom I was rooting hard for because of my days coaching her, she entered the Games more confident than ever before, as she had moved beyond the mental blocks that had plagued her in 2016 and 2017. Honestly, it got more than a bit annoying listening to the commentators constantly bringing up her past failures. Through the rounds, Harrison looked smooth and in control, but Camacho-Quinn was looking dominant. In the final, Harrison got one of her better starts and put a lot of pressure on Camacho-Quinn. But Camacho-Quinn just kept attacking the hurdles like clockwork, making no mistakes as she pulled away in the final third of the race. Harrison got a little wobbly off the last hurdle as Tapper made a big rush to the finish line, but Harrison was able to hold on for the silver. For Camacho-Quinn, it was a fitting climax to a fantastic season, and to a return to prominence after struggling in the past and contemplating quitting the sport. The future looks bright for her for sure.
On the men’s side, let’s start by talking about the big names who didn’t compete. McLeod finished 8th at the Jamaican Trials due to severe cramps, and was not granted an at-large bid because all three hurdlers who finished in the top three had run under 13.20. Earlier this year, McLeod was the world leader and was looking like he was ready to not only defend his 2016 Olympic title, but to challenge the world record. But things did not work out that way. In a Diamond League meet shortly after the Jamaican Trials, he fell behind early and pressed, hit a lot of hurdles, and jogged across the line. As for Ortega, I had no idea where he was when I didn’t see him in the opening round at the Trials. Later I read an article that said he pulled out while warming up before the first round due to an injury. The article didn’t specify what the injury was.
So with no McLeod and no Ortega, it was looking like a freeway to the gold medal for Holloway. But in the first two rounds, he wasn’t looking as sharp as he had looked at the US Trials. He was winning, but was running in the 13.10’s instead of the sub-13’s we saw at the Trials. In the final, he got his typically fast start, but somewhere around the middle of the race he seemed to be struggling to maintain his momentum. Still, with the huge early lead he had gained, it looked like he would still hold on for the gold. But Parchment, who stayed steady and consistent all the way through, kept coming, and coming, and coming, and passed Holloway on the run-in off the last hurdle. Holloway seemed to stumble and suffer a slight drop of the hips coming off the last hurdle; that, coupled with Parchment’s surge, cost him the gold. So, ironically perhaps, Jamaica still won the gold in this event without McLeod. With Ronald Levy eking out Devon Allen and Pascal Martinot-Lagarde for the bronze, Jamaica won two medals in this event, most definitely justifying the controversial decision to not give McLeod one of the team spots. Personally, I feel that a defending Olympic champion should be given a free pass to the next Olympics, similarly to how it is done in the World Championships; that way, Jamaica could’ve sent four athletes.
Though Allen didn’t medal, I was still impressed with his performance. His technique is looking so good these days, and he’s been extremely consistent. A 13.14 for fourth place is nothing to be ashamed of. Meanwhile, on the women’s side, I’m disappointed for Christian Clemons, who didn’t make it to the final. After her showing at the US Trials, I considered her a medal contender. I’m also disappointed for Holloway, although there’s a bittersweet element to it because you have to be happy for Parchment, who has been chasing gold for many years now. The one thing this Olympic year has proven is that the sprint hurdle events are very unpredictable, and the race has to be won on the track.
[/am4show]
