Travis Williams delivered a strong showing at the Big 10 Conference Championships over the weekend, securing a second-place finish in the 60m dash with a time of 6.59 seconds. While he fell short of the title, which went to his University of Southern California (USC) teammate Christyn John Stevenson (6.56), Williams remains optimistic about the progress he has made this season and the path ahead. Oregon junior PJ Ize-Iyamu finished third in 6.64 seconds.

Reflecting on his performance, Williams acknowledged the challenges of competing in a two-section final but maintained accountability for his execution. "Every race signifies progress," he said. "It was really hard for me to gauge myself mid-race because of the two-section format, but I take responsibility for my performance. I feel great about where I am this season. I'm healthier and in a better place physically and mentally compared to last year. The times haven’t hit yet, but they will soon."

Revealing that he is in much better shape this year, Williams has been working on specific aspects of his sprinting technique, particularly his start and drive phase. He believes his first 30 metres have improved significantly, but admits he still needs to be more patient in holding his drive phase longer.

“My progress so far, I'm healthy, I'm in a better position than I was last year physically and mentally.  I feel optimistic, I feel great because I'm somewhat ahead of where I was last year. My top-end speed has gotten way better," he explained. “There is just that I need to be more patient on my bread and butter, which is my first 30. So me holding my driver longer could be the difference between me winning the national championship or me coming running up again.

“So yeah, I was working a lot on my first 15, 30 metres, so that's got extremely better from last year. It's just me to put the pieces together.

"My cadence and first strides are more fluid. But in the final, I shortened my drive phase to about three steps, which caused me to rise too early. Holding my drive longer could be the difference between winning a national championship or finishing runner-up again.”

Williams credits his training group at USC for pushing him to elevate his performance. He trains alongside elite sprinters, including C.J Stevenson, who also competes in the long jump. The energy in practice sessions is intense, and Williams believes this internal competition will translate into major successes at the NCAA Indoor Championships and the outdoor season.

"Every day in practice is a battle. No one wants to lose. We have a solid squad going into nationals and outdoors. Indoors, the 60m has been extremely competitive nationwide, with a lot of guys running low 6.5s, so I had to focus on that. But for outdoors, we have a lot of guys who thrive in the 100m and 200m, so we expect to drop some fast times."

While Williams was expected to run the 200m during the indoor season, a bout of food poisoning at the Texas Tech Invite derailed those plans. He had been slated to compete in both the 60m and 200m, but illness forced him to withdraw.

"That was my chance to get a 200m race in, but I woke up the night before throwing up and had to sit out. Since then, I’ve been focusing on the 60m, but I definitely plan to run the 200m outdoors," he confirmed. "I've been doing a lot of over-distance training, which will help my second-half race execution. My coach (John Bolton) and I have already discussed my outdoor schedule, and I might even open up with a 200m."

Despite the minor setback at the Big 10 Championships, Williams remains confident in his ability to peak at the right time. He and his team are still fueled by the disappointment of narrowly missing out on a conference title due to a controversial disqualification in the 4x400m relay.

"Our spirits are high, but we felt like we were cheated in some ways. We have a chip on our shoulder, and we're carrying that fire into nationals and beyond. The goal remains the same: keep improving and drop fast times when it matters most."