‘Cubby’ as he called enjoyed an outstanding career while in high school at Calabar High. He won multiple titles at the ISSA Boys and Girls Championships, a World Youth 400m title in 2015 and a Pan Am Junior 200m title in 2017. He was a silver medalist in the 400m at the 2018 World U20 championships and he won 10 gold medals at the Carifta Games.
However, in 2019, injury blighted his final year in high school and saw him dethroned as the 400m king. In addition, the injury forced him to withdraw from the 200m as Calabar relinquished the Mortimer Geddes Trophy for the first time in eight years.
It later became known that the now 20-year-old Taylor was suffering from serious muscular injuries that required an extensive period of rest and recovery. It was during that period that he moved to Jacksonville, Florida, to heal and train under the guidance of world-renowned coach Rana Reider.
Taylor tells Sportsmax.TV that things have been going very well.
“Training overseas is a new experience for me that I greatly appreciate. It pushes me to train to the best of my ability and I have gained a level of confidence that I never thought I would have after leaving high school,” he said.
“It is an awesome feeling to know you are able to get motivation from your team members simply because they have my best interest at heart. Transitioning from training at Calabar to Tumbleweed track club went smoother than I had imagined. There is a more organized training structure, the coach takes the time to understand you as an athlete and the training camp feels more like a family home.”
Coach Reider has had tremendous success as a coach. The 49-year-old American, at one point or another, has guided the careers of two-time 200m World Champion Dafne Schippers, Olympic and World Champion triple jumper Christian Taylor, British Olympian Adam Gemili, as well as Olympic and World Championships medalist Andre De Grasse.
In addition to Taylor, he currently works with Jamaican athletes Olympic and World Champion Omar McLeod, Brittany Anderson, Tyquendo Tracey and Christania Williams.
Taylor believes Reider has demonstrated the characteristics and qualities that will help him develop and improve as an athlete and get him closer to realizing his full potential.
“Training with Rana Reider is one of the best feelings knowing that I am being trained by a coach that has trained Olympics and World Championships medalist,” he said.
“His training so far has been very effective and it has been great! He is a no-nonsense coach but looks out for our best interest. His training methods are unbelievable, but they do give results.”
Taylor said it also helps that he is now healthy once again in an environment that encourages him to improve, what with his fellow Jamaicans around him daily.
“I have fully recovered from my injuries and I am 100 per cent healthy at the moment. If I should compare my health now to that of the past, I would say I am very much healthier than before, keeping a strict routine and maintaining a positive mindset,” he said.
“Having other Jamaican athletes in the training camp makes it easier for me to adjust from the energy received. It makes you excited for training knowing that you will get the vibe, the push and motivation from your teammates during training sessions. “
Williams, 19, who set a new national U20 record of 11.01 on Sunday, clocked a new personal best of 10.98, despite a poor start to record her second win in as many days.
Mikiah Brisco finished second in 11.09 with Dezerea Bryant finishing third in 11.14.
Williams had given a hint of what to expect in the preliminary round when she ran 10.97 to win her heat. However, the trailing wind of 2.5m/s prevented that time from being recognized as the Jamaican national U20 record.
In the final, the wind was only 1.0 m/s well below the allowable limit of 2.0m/s.
Earlier, Yohan Blake was second in the 100m clocking 10.09s as he trailed the USA’s Ronnie Baker across the line. The American clocked 9.99.
Marvin Bracy-William was third in 10.11.
Williams wasn’t the only Jamaican with a new personal best Monday night, as promising sprint hurdler Britanny Anderson clocked 12.59 to win the 100m hurdles. It was almost a duplicate of the 12.58 lifetime best she ran in the preliminary round, except for the poor start in the final where she defeated Christina Clemons, who clocked 12.64 for second place narrowly edging 2015 World Champion Danielle Williams who ran 12.65 for third.
Earlier, Javon Francis won his 400m race in 45.84. Quintaveon Poole was second in 45.87 and Myles Pringle third in 46.11.
The BVI’s Ashley Kelly won her 400m in 54.86 over Belize’s Samantha Dirks 55.01 and Canada's Carline Muir 55.48.
Shamier Little won the 400m hurdles in a world-leading 53.12 beating Jamaica’s Ronda Whyte, who ran a season-best 54.33 for the runner-up spot. Her compatriot Shiann Salmon, also ran a personal best of 54.97 for third.
The 25-year-old Jamaican clocked 10.04s to win his heat at the JAC Combined Events Championships, making him the second-fastest Jamaican this year. Julian Forte’s 10.03 set two weeks ago in Kingston, leads all Jamaican male sprinters for 2020.
The time was also an improvement on Ewers’ 10.10 run in Clermont, Florida, at the end of July that took the young sprinter closer to his goal in this COVID-19-impacted season.
“When I started to compete again the goal really was to execute, have fun and get a good run in and knock the rust off,” Ever said Monday. “After that, I told myself that I believe I can run sub-10 the next meet possibly 10.0x if I can find one.”
The time took him close to his personal best of 9.98 that he ran in Tampa, Florida, in May 2018 and is proving to be a boost to his belief that another sub-10 run is not far away.
“I believe I’m capable of it but, unfortunately, this may be my last meet for the year due to everything going on and the difficulties in finding meets,” he said. “Now, my focus is on the Olympics next year and working hard to accomplish my goals.
“Even though my ultimate goal was to run sub 10, I look at 10.04 as a blessing, given the circumstances and lack of resources I have right now. I’m honestly pleased with the time.”
During his final years at Florida State University, Ewers progress was hampered by persistent injury. He now says those days are behind him, thanks to the work of his coach, Ricky Argro.
“To prevent injuries, my coach makes me do a lot of different kinds of pool workouts,” he said. “My health right now is really good. I’m healthy and I’m thankful for that.”
His agent Mario Bassani was unable to confirm or deny that the athlete he represents was leaving the club that he joined in 2019.
Once the most feared sprint hurdler in the world after winning the Olympic title in 2016, the World Championships title in 2017 to go along with a World Indoor title, McLeod has hit upon some challenging times in the past few years and has changed coaches several times since he signed a professional contract with Nike in 2015.
After leaving Coach Rick Case at Arkansas in 2017 for Eldrick Floreal, who at the time was at Kentucky, McLeod has since2018 been coached by Tony Ross before moving to Rana Reider at Tumbleweed.
Also during that period, he was disqualified in the 110m hurdles finals at the 2019 World Championships in Doha and then last year lost out on the chance to defend his Olympic title in Tokyo when he finished last in the final of the Jamaican National Championships last summer.
He drew the ire of the Jamaican public when he accused the JAAA of not treating him fairly while indicating that he should be considered for selection to the Jamaican team for the Tokyo Games. As it turned out, two of the top three finishers at the Jamaican championships, Hansle Parchment and Ronald Levy – won gold and bronze, respectively, in Tokyo.
However, the 2016 Olympic 110m hurdles champion gave no indication of why he had decided to leave or where he intended to go. His agent Mario Bassani declined to shed any light on the move which apparently took many by surprise.
As it turns out, the 2017 World Champion did not move too far away as Kyprianou shed light on his destination with a post on social media on Monday.
“Welcome to the group Omar @_warrior_child_!. Very excited to take this journey with you! Very thankful to @episcopaleagles for helping create this Olympic training group. What a great place to work at…”
Kyprianou joined the coaching staff at the University of Georgia in 2008 as an assistant coach, eventually becoming head coach in 2015. During his time there he won several awards while leading UGA to 11 top-four NCAA finishes in the last five seasons.
In 2017, he was named Women Outdoor Coach of the Year. In 2018, he won the NCAA Indoor Women’s title as well as the Men’s Outdoor title, which resulted in him winning the awards of Women’s Indoor Coach of the Year and the Men’s Outdoor Coach of the Year.
However, despite his success there, reports emerged in May 2021 that Kyprianou planned to leave Georgia when his contract expired in June that year.
The Athens Banner-Herald reported that in 2020, he turned down a multi-year extension offered by then-athletic director Greg McGarity and instead took a one-year extension.
In September, News4Jax reported that Kyprianou had joined the coaching staff at the Episcopal School of Jacksonville as the director of sports performance, a rare position in high school athletics.
Among the athletes he coached at UGA were Olympic champion Shaunae Miller-Uibo, USA triple jump champion, Kenturah Orji and Jamaican Olympian Chanice Porter.
He has also coached the likes of British heptathlete Katarina Johnson-Thompson, St Lucia’s Levern Spencer, Maicel Uibo, Lynna Irby and rising sprinter/long jumper Matthew Boling.
Williams, 19, who broke her national U20 record twice between Sunday and Monday night, ran times of 11.19 and 11.01 on Sunday at the JAC Summer Open in Jacksonville, Florida. The 11.01 lowered her national u20 record of 11.02 set in Albuquerque, New Mexico in June 2019.
The record would last just over 24 hours as on Monday night at the American Track League’s Duval County Challenge inside Hodges Stadium in Jacksonville, she ran a wind-aided 10.97 and then a wind-legal 10.98 to lower the record once more.
Her coach, Ato Boldon, was pleased with everything, except Monday’s poor start, that his young charge delivered over the two days and declared afterwards that she is right where he wanted her to be four weeks from Jamaica’s National Championships to select a team to the Olympic Games in July.
“I liked the fact that she competed but it’s just strange for me to not see Briana react well to the gun. She didn’t react normally to the gun and then she panicked a little bit and stood up out of her drive phase,” he said.
“It tells me that where I thought she should be, is where she is. That was 10.87, she lost about a tenth with not having a normal Briana start.”
Looking at the bigger picture, Boldon said Williams proved that she is ready to handle multiple rounds of competition, circumstances she will face at the national championships at the end of June and at the Olympic Games in Tokyo, should she get there.
“The most important thing about this weekend is that this young lady ran 11.19, 11.01, 10.97 and 10.98 so her body can handle the work, she is ready for rounds. This was more a workout than anything else because I purposely wanted to push her,” he said.
“We will back off this week and get her ready for the last couple of races and then get her ready for trials.”
