Olympic and World 400m champion Kirani James has revealed that while his Grave’s Disease is under control he is not yet certain when he will open his season despite the fact the Olympics are only six months away.
He has not competed since he ran in the finals of the World Champions in late 2019.
“I don’t have a clear idea of when I will compete,” James told Sportsmax.TV in response to queries about when he plans to open his season. In a way, it kind of reflects the uncertainty that has surrounded James these past three years and how he has worked to overcome the associated challenges.
The now 28-year-old Grenadian learned in 2017, that he was suffering from Grave’s Disease, a condition that causes an overactive thyroid. He was diagnosed after an inexplicably poor performance at the Drake Relays where he ran his slowest time in almost 10 years.
He became the most famous track and field athletes since US Olympic gold medalist Gail Devers to have had the disease.
After taking the rest of the year off, James had a winning return to competition at the Racer’s Grand Prix in Kingston in June 2018, running an encouraging 44.35. Then, in 2019, he qualified for the finals of the 400m at the 2019 World Championships in Doha where he finished fifth in 44.54.
When the pandemic hit in 2020, James stayed off the track focusing instead on staying healthy, revealing that he has developed a greater understanding of the disease.
“The situation is under control right now. I have to see doctors and stuff but training consistently is the challenge,” he said explaining how the pandemic has impacted his preparations for the Olympics.
“I just tried to get rest, to be honest. I tried to get as much as I can.”
However, there is still some remaining uncertainty, as far as James is concerned. Asked what kind of shape he is in now, six months out from the Olympics scheduled for July 23 to August 8, James replied, “that’s more a question for my coach (Harvey Glance). He is the one that sees that stuff. It’s hard to gauge how I’m feeling.”
For certain, that will be determined by summer.