The ‘Closer’ has done it again.
With an unprecedented silver medal run, Guyanese sprint phenom Kadecia Baird lived up to her uncanny nickname and shut the curtains on her country’s foray at the 14th IAAF World Junior Championships with aplomb. The 17-year old’s show was the overture that lofted the Golden Arrowhead at the global event in Barcelona , Spain .
In the final race for a Guyanese at the six-day meet, the USA-based Kadeica plied a classic presentation of her prospering potential to circle the 400m lap in 51.04s for the medal – the first ever for Guyana at these championships. She dropped her one-month old personal best (PR) by a whopping second and a tenth and, also, gathered the area junior (AJ) record for all of South America .
One of the hottest young stars in New York’s sports loop, Kadecia came into the meet ranked as the No.6 junior in the world, and leaves as the second fastest in 2012, behind race winner American Ashley Spencer who literally had to run a meet record – 50.50s – to defeat the Guyanese wunderkind.
“I really didn’t expect a medal in Barcelona ,” the uber reserved Medgar Evers Prep high schooler told the IAAF media after the race. Even the IAAF was awed, stating that the Guyanese “took arguably one of the most unexpected medals of the championships.”
Kadecia was sandwiched by another American – collegian Erika Rucker (51.10s) who took the bronze in a PB, also. They, effectively, locked up the three podium positions from lanky Bahamanian Shaunae Miller (51.78s), the defending champion and last year’s World Youth Championships gold medalist. With the exception of Miller, all the athletes returned their best marks, ever.
It was concert. Much more for Kadecia, herself; than for the myriad of supporters who hold out great expectations on the sprint star’s career. “This is awesome. It’s hard to find words to describe what she’s accomplished, but right now Guyana can vaunt and celebrate about this,” chirped her school’s head-coach Nicola Martial who followed her charge’s European exploits with bated breath.
A 1996 Olympian for Guyana , Martial remained in the USA where her anxiety turned to serenity and glee when she watched the race’s simulcast then chatted with the star and the other Guyana team members, including their coach and par-manager Shaun Dietz – Martial’s husband. “They’re celebrating.”
The 17-year old is the baby of the Guyana contingent, and Martial said she is cheery over her kismet and is sharing with fellow athletes Sheniece Daphness ( Girls 200m) and Stephan James (Boys 400m). Daphness was disqualified in her opening race, while James ended at the semis, but improved his PB.
Dietz had indicated that Kadecia’s exposure at the 2011 World Youth meet helped to “toughen her convictions” that she posses the capacity to do well at world class. “My thing is that you got to go out there mentally ready, knowing that you can do this,” he stressed, noting that Guyana has talented runners that must be routinely exposed.
Before jetting to Spain , Kadecia who was given the nickname ‘Closer’ because of her slamming anchor legs on relay teams, had said her aim was “to have fun and do my best”. It might have been arduous for the sprint star on the tracks, but now she can seek the frivolity that follows a feat by the feet. “I broke finally my personal best over one second so it’s awesome. However, I could have run better if I had been more aggressive in the start.”
Then, again, it’s not necessarily the start that counts; it’s how you finish, especially for a ‘Closer’.
