Williams pulls up in marathon

Faced with serious financial restraints, and a nagging Achilles injury, Bahamian long distance runner O’Neil Williams might have encountered one too many hurdles in his attempt to qualify for the Tokyo Olympic Games in the men’s marathon.

The now 38-year-old Olympic hopeful was forced to pull up in the Marathon Izmir 2021 10K (10-kilometer) Virtual Run in Izmir, Turkey, on Sunday, as he was bothered by Achilles tendonitis that he suffered while training in Iten, Kenya. Williams has been in Kenya training for the past 10 years in hopes of becoming the first Bahamian to ever qualify for the Olympics, or any world championships event, in marathon running. He is the lone marathon runner in The Bahamas today.

“It’s unfortunate. My training was going really well, the preparation was there and I felt like the body was in a real good position for me to go out there and run a really fast time,” said Williams. “There was a long run of about 30 kilometers in Iten during training when I suffered the injury. I got pain killers, did therapy, and tried my best to rest my leg so that the injury could heal but it’s very difficult to get over an injury in a short period of time.

“I decided to give it a go, went out with the elite athletes and it felt good for a while. I was keeping up with the elite athletes, pushing the pace, but at about the 4K (four-kilometer) mark, I felt a pinch. I never go out with the elite athletes, since I started running, but I felt really good on this day and decided to take it out. It just got to the point where every time I stepped, I felt a burning session and I couldn’t continue. It was unfortunate that I couldn’t finish. I was running good times in training and felt like I was in in good shape and completely healed but it just wasn’t to be.”

Williams failed to get halfway through the race, suffering from immense pain in his ankle. He said he didn’t have the money he needed to deal with the injury like he wanted to, and that caused him in his recovery efforts.

“It’s frustrating. Here I am trying something that has never been done before, qualifying for the Olympics in the marathon, and I’m unable to get the financial support that I need. I felt like this could have been avoided,” he said. “I put my heart and soul into a country where I have to fight to be a part of a system that is constantly pushing me back and not trying to help me succeed. I don’t know where to go from here. I’m doing this for my family and my daughter. I just want to represent my country and be proud of what I did and for my daughter to have better life.”

Williams has spent the past two years trying to qualify for the Tokyo Olympic Games which is now set for this summer, July 23 to August 8. The men’s marathon at the Olympics wouldn’t be held until Sunday, August 8. Williams would have to shave about 18 minutes off his personal best national record time in order to qualify for the Olympics on time. He set the national record of 2:29.28 at the TCS Amsterdam Marathon in Amsterdam, Netherlands, in 2019, finishing 59th out of more than 13,000 runners. The qualifying time for the Olympics is 2:11.30.

Williams initially broke Delroy Boothe’s long-standing national record of 2:34.47 at the 35th Ameris Bank Jacksonville Marathon in Jacksonville, Florida, in 2017, running 2:30.35. Boothe’s former mark was 2:34.47 which lasted for 18 years.

With time running out for Olympic qualification, set for the end of May, Williams is simply asking to be placed at the bottom level of the subvention ladder, giving him something to work on in his continuous bid to qualify. The only other way to qualify for the Olympics is through World Athletics ranking points, and he could also receive an invitation to compete based on athlete quota for the men’s marathon at the Olympics.

“I was there when BAAA (Bahamas Association of Athletic Associations) President Drumeco Archer was beckoning on my behalf to be placed on subvention. The ministry (Ministry of Youth, Sports and Culture) had told me many times that they needed recommendation for me to be placed on subvention and here they were receiving that recommendation and still nothing happened,” said Williams. “I got some money in 2019 but nothing in 2020. They were telling me that I don’t work for The Bahamas. What am I doing if I’m not working for The Bahamas?” he asked. “Every time I run, I put on The Bahamas’ colors and I compete. How can I continue doing this if I’m not getting support from the people who are suppose to be supporting me? They don’t want me to succeed. It pains me to say that about my country but it is what it is.”

Williams said he has received subvention once before, in 2013, but it was only for a short period of time and then discontinued. He said he has had to resort to asking family and friends for assistance.

“I’m forever thankful for those who have come forward to assist me – my mother Dawn Knowles; my aunt Joan Sweeting; adopted father, Minister of Tourism and Aviation Dionisio D’Aguilar; my coach Wilson Bain; Glen Bain; Shavaughn Blades from Bahamas Roadmasters and others. Also, I have to thank my MP (Member of Parliament) Glenys Hanna-Martin. She intervened on my behalf, saying that we have a Bahamian in Kenya representing the country, and I was able to get some assistance. She is a woman who looks out for the people,” said Williams. “It’s hard to overcome this type of situation without the financial backing, but I’m continuing to fight this financial battle in order to represent the country that I love so much.”

Williams said he is not even at the developmental stage of subvention which is listed at $12,000 per annum. It is the lowest level in the government’s subvention program. The Bahamas Olympic Committee (BOC) has pledged on a number of occasions to assist developing athletes in their attempts to attain qualifying marks for the Olympics through Olympic solidarity funds, but Williams said he was told by a BOC official that he needs to be an Olympian in order to receive assistance funds from the BOC.

He is on a mission to become the first Bahamian to qualify for the Olympics in any distance event. The fight goes on for Williams.

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