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Fred Kerley believes young athletes should stay in junior categories to develop mentally and physically without the intimidation and pressures of senior competition, which he says can harm their careers and benefit coaches more than the athletes themselves.
Reigning Olympic bronze medallist Fred Kerley has explained why having young athletes compete with the seniors is hurting the sport and why they should remain in their respective categories.
Fred Kerley pointed out that the senior athletes have their own way of doing things and they might intimidate the young athletes and hurt them mentally, explaining that it makes the sport damaging to the youngsters.
The former world champion urged the management and coaches of the youngsters to let the seniors have their moments as he noted that the youngster’s times will just come but for now, they should focus on competing in their categories.
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05:20 - 30.10.2024
Why Sabastian Sawe deserves World Athletics Out of Stadium Athlete of the Year nomination
World Athletics has nominated five athletes for the Men’s Out of Stadium Athlete of the Year award, sparking controversy over the omission of consistent road runner Sabastian Sawe, despite his impressive season.
“I feel like it’s good for publicity but the kid is not being a kid anymore and they are racing against strong men. I feel like it’s hurting our sport too because they are talented but I feel like they should stay in the kid path. They are good to compete with us but at the end of the day, we were meant for these moments,” Fred Kerley said on the Ready Set Go podcast.
“The under-23 and under-20, that’s good for them but we are going to hurt their feelings because I’m talking s**t in the call room and looking at you and I’m staring down at you and I don’t care because at the end of the day, that’s what we do,” he added.
Fred Kerley insisted that the young athletes have a weak mentality and are yet to grow thick skin hence the intimidation from senior athletes hitting hard. He added that they are usually used to beating their fellow juniors and when they compete with the senior athletes and lose, it does something to their mentality.
The American sprint icon added that most of the time, the coaches and management of these young athletes are the ones who benefit from their contract signings and not the athletes themselves since there is so little they know about managing their finances.
He also observed the shelf life of most young athletes, noting that women tend to fizzle out faster than men hence they should take their careers cautiously.
“I feel like it’s cool of the idea of the athlete signing but it’s also not cool because they haven’t really developed to their strength yet…they haven’t been in a gym, they haven’t really been none of that because I feel like if you are 16, you are still a sophomore,” Fred Kerley said.
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20:40 - 27.10.2024
Jamaica’s only Paris 2024 Olympics gold medalist considering shock career switch
Roje Stona, who won Jamaica’s only gold medal is mulling the possibility of quitting athletics to play American football as he feels he has everything needed for an NFL career.
“Let’s say if I go run 9.8 tomorrow as a 16-year-old, you have to run faster than that next year. You think us strong a** men think about what a kid is running? No, you have to do that week in and out. I think kids of nowadays are running faster at a young age and coaches and stuff are getting more benefits than the kids and I think mental health will play a big role in a lot of stuff because as kids, girls and women tend to mature faster than women and they will not benefit because they won’t be there for long.”
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