The Tribune

By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

EVERYBODY is coping with the coronavirus differently from each other, including Bahamian quarter-miler Steven Gardiner, who is still in a full-fledged training camp in the United States of America.

Gardiner, who lowered his national record in the men's 400 metres to an astonishing 43.48 seconds to win the World Championships title last year in Doha, Qatar, said everything is as normal as it was prior to the shutdown of all major international competition in March after the National Basketball Association was first to take a break in activities after Utah Jazz centre Rudy Gobert became the first athlete to be tested positive for the virus.

"We're still training. We had to push our schedule back because we didn't know what will take place for the rest of the year," said Gardiner from Clermont, Florida, where he's training under the watchful eyes of coach Gary Evans.

"We're just trying to stay healthy."

Gardiner, 24, said there's really no curfew where he's located because the city has not recorded any death from the spread of the virus, but they are advised to continue to practice social distancing.

Gardiner, who is in a training camp that includes Bahamian Kenard Rolle, said the track and field facilities are still closed to the public, but they are utilising an open field facility to stay in shape.

"We also do bike riding on Saturdays as a training group," Gardiner said. "So we still have our working sessions."

With all of his original plans changed, including the postponement of the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan until 2021, Gardiner said he's not allowing it to get to his mind.

"I still want to go out there and prepare for the season. Everything is out of our control, as far as what's happening around the world," he stated. "Meets have been cancelled and we're not sure when the first outdoor meet for the year will take place.

"I'm still working hard and training. That isn't going to change. We just don't know when things will start up again, so we have to be in some shape so that when it goes, you will be ready to compete."

With the International Olympic Committee forced to postpone the Olympics until next year, Gardiner said it will work in his favour because it will give his body more than enough time to be fully recuperated from last season. "We had a short break last year before we went back to work," said Gardiner of the time between the World Championships in August and the start of the offseason in November, 2020.

"We now have a little more time to prepare for the Olympics."

Gardiner was hoping to add the Olympic title to his World Championship crown in his projected two years span before his season was interrupted just as he was preparing to get it started. "Training is important, but rest is more important at this level," Gardiner said. "Our training is out of our control, so we just have to work with whatever time we have.

"I haven't had any track meet so far this year so I just have to keep on working and hope for the best as we wait to see what happens with this coronavirus."

The 6-foot, 5-inch native from Murphy Town, Abaco, encouraged the Bahamian public to follow all of the necessary rules and regulations given by the Bahamas government to help the country get through the pandemic as quickly as possible.

"I want everybody to stay prayed up and stay at home and stay safe. That's most important," Gardiner stressed.

While he reaches out to his family, including his parents Theresa and Steven Gardiner, his brothers, sisters and grandparents, just about every day, Gardiner said he's happy to know that they are all following the guidelines.

Although he knows that at some point he will return home, once the virus has passed, one of the first things Gardiner said he intends to do is take a vacation.

"Staying at home and just training is kind of boring," he said. "I think a nice break for me would be to take a vacation because I actually didn't have one last year."

When asked if he has any particular place he would like to visit, Gardiner said he hasn't given it any thought, although there are a few destinations that he would like to consider.

Gardiner deserves the trip after he completed last season, winning his second consecutive medal at the World Championships. His gold in Doha improved on the silver he claimed at the 2017 championships in London, England, behind world record holder Wayde van Niekerk.

The South African, who also won the Olympic gold medal in 2016 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in a world record breaking time of 43.03, was expected to make his return to the international scene after suffering an injury playing rugby in October, 2017.

Gardiner, who didn't make the final in the 400m in Rio, ran the third leg on the men's 4 x 400m relay that included Alonzo Russell, Michael Mathieu and Chris 'Fireman' Brown that picked up the bronze behind the United States and Jamaica.

When the final IAAF World Relays was held in the Bahamas at the Thomas A Robinson National Stadium in 2017, Gardiner ran on the mixed gender 4 x 400m team that comprised of Shaunae Miller-Uibo, Anthonique Strachan and Mathieu that clinched the much anticipated gold for the Bahamas.

At the 2015 World Relays, Gardiner helped the Bahamas to earn the silver medal in the men's 4 x 400m relay on the team of Ramon Miller, Mathieu and Brown.

However, when the World Relays went to Yokohama, Japan in 2019 after the Bahamas government decided that it was unable to host the event again, the Bahamas didn't compete after Gardiner suffered an injury that prevented him from competing.

Gardiner doubles as the Bahamian national record holder in the 200m in 19.75 that was set in 2018 in Miami, Florida.

He was a former volleyball player who was introduced to track and field by his Moore's Island coach Anthony Williams before he moved to New Providence and was coached by George Cleare where his career started to flourish on the international scene.