The Tribune

By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@tribunermedia.net

Her collegiate career is over. Now Ty’Nia Gaither is hoping that she can make the transition to the next level, competing as a professional athlete.

Gaither completed her senior year at the University of Southern California, placing fourth in the women’s 100 metres in 11.08 seconds and fifth in the 200m in 22.54 at the NCAA Division One Outdoor Championships in Eugene, Oregon, over the weekend.

The focus now is for Gaither to get ready for the Bahamas Association of Athletic Associations’ National Open Track and Field Championships, June 24-25 at the new Thomas A Robinson National Stadium and solidify her spot on the team that will represent the Bahamas at the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, August 5-21.

“I feel I’m in a very good position to come home for Nationals and compete at a very high level,” Gaither told The Tribune. “I want to be able to PR again when I come home. That is my goal.

“I’m healthy and more focused than ever, so I am looking forward to competing at Nationals and then going on to compete at the Olympics.”

Gaither, a 23-year-old 5-2 sprinter, has already qualified for both sprint events, surpassing the standards of 11.32 and 23.20 respectively and she’s hoping that the women’s 4 x 100m relay team will also qualify and she can compete on that team as well.

“As I continue to fine tune, I hope to see how my improvement can help me to compete at the Olympics,” Gaither said. “It’s exciting for me to be able to compete in the games in both events.

“For the past few years, I’ve been dealing with a lot of injuries, but after tearing my hamstring last year and to be able to come back this year and excel at the level that I’ve done so, I’m very excited about my future.”

Still sharp from just competing over the weekend, Gaither said there’s nothing much that she can do now to bring up her intensity because she faced some stiff competition during the NCAA Nationals.

“I just feel as though it will come down to me taking care of my body, eating right, the small stuff like that,” she said.

“I just want to make sure that my body is in tip-top shape so I can come home and do what I’ve been doing lately.”

She will come having ran the second fastest time by a Bahamian so far this year in both the 100 and 200m behind Shaunae Miller, who has done 11.19 and 22.05. But the good thing is she should be the competitor to watch as Miller will only concentrate on the 400m.

“I’m very grateful that the level of competition (at the NCAA Nationals) was what it was at this year,” Gaither said. “It will definitely prepare me for what is to come. Having to go up against some of the top women in the nation was a blessing for me. It just makes me want to work harder when I come home.”

She won’t have any shortage of competition as Gaither is expected to be challenged by competitors such as Anthonique Strachan, who is making her comeback after undergoing surgery last year, veteran Debbie Ferguson-McKenzie, who will be competing in her final Nationals and others like Carmiesha Cox, Lanece Clarke, Sheniqua ‘Q’ Ferguson and Nivea Smith.

Looking back at her collegiate experience, Gaither could only say that she was blessed.

“I had many, many blessings,” she pointed out. “I’m just fortunate that I was in the position that I was in. I was pleased to have been coached by one of the best coaches in the nation. I’ve learned a lot on and off the track. I just consider myself to be blessed.”

Gaither, who was born in Grand Bahama to parents Sabrina Johnson and Tony Gaither, attended Osceola High in Kissimmee, Florida, went on to compete for the University of Georgia before she transferred to USC.

“Transferring from Georgia to USC was one of the greatest decisions that I made,” she said. “I was able to travel to a different part of the United States and took on a whole different lifestyle. But it helped me to grow and strengthened my aspirations to be great.

“Having to leave everything I know on the East Coast to come to the West Coast, it really revealed my love for the sport. Just being a part of the USC programme was a blessing. Everything that we do came with hard work and it really revealed my love for the sport.”

With the Olympics right around the corner, Gaither said she is hoping that she can get to run in another meet after the Nationals before she goes to Rio. Once that’s done, she will concentrate on her future as a pro athlete.

“I love this sport more than anything else,” she said. “I want to go pro and to continue to do what I love.”