Aug. 18, 2008
In the Fast Lane with Jose Acevedo
Going the Distance with David Freeman
Clearing Hurdles with Mikel Thomas
On the Moooooove with Coach Tucker
Beijing, China – University of Kentucky hurdler Mikel Thomas made the most of his Olympic debut Monday by advancing to the second round of the 110 meter hurdles at the 2008 Summer Games. Thomas, representing Trinidad and Tobago, qualified with an at-large time of 13.69 to move on to the next round at 8:45 p.m. Tuesday (Tues. 8:45 a.m. ET) at the National Stadium in Beijing, China.
After a false start by another athlete charged to the field, Thomas finished sixth in his heat but ran one of the top eight at-large times to advance to the final 32 in the world. Thomas’ mark of 13.69 was his best performance since a wind-aided 13.57 finish at the NCAA Mideast Regional in May.
In the second round, the Kentucky senior races in heat one of the 110m hurdles. Thomas, the youngest athlete in his heat, starts in the blocks of lane three. American David Payne lines up next to the Wildcat in lane four. The top three in each of the four heats and the next four top times advance to the semifinals on Wednesday evening.
“Even though I ran a good time, I know I have room for improvement,” Thomas said. “It felt good but I hit the last few hurdles and almost fell across the line. I get another chance tomorrow night. I’m going in with the same mind frame plus additional confidence.”
Kentucky assistant coach for sprints Erin Tucker, serving as a guest coach for Venezuela, who saw the race in person was ecstatic for one of his star pupils.
“He continues to impress me,” said Tucker. “He is truly a success story. His personal record in high school was 14.90 and his first 110 high hurdles race was last year when he won the Trinidad and Tobago National Championship at 14.14. He was recruited as a 400 intermediate hurdler but he has matured into an Olympic 110m high hurdler.”
Coach Tucker’s other Olympian, Jose Acevedo, finished fifth in his heat of nine athletes with a time of 21.06 in the 200 meter dash, but did not qualify for the second round. The senior representing his home country of Venezuela was hampered by a slow start out of the blocks, but quickly recovered to beat half of his competitors in the heat.
“Jose will definitely learn from this experience,” Tucker said. “Your first Olympic Games competition is always the hardest. He was ready to roll, but his nerves got the best of him. He won’t have that problem anymore.”
The 2008 Beijing Games are the first to have multiple track athletes represent Kentucky. UK track and field has been represented by one participant at every summer Olympics since the 1976 Montreal Games with the exception of the heavily boycotted Moscow Games in 1980.
Big Blue fans can follow the progress of the Kentucky track and field contingent in Beijing by clicking the UK Olympics button on the UKathletics.com homepage. The special Wildcat Olympians webpage contains bios and features blogs frequently updated by each of the track athletes and UK assistant coach Erin Tucker during their 2008 Summer Games experiences.
Stay tuned to UKathletics.com for Olympic Games updates and more post-season news.
University of Kentucky 2008 Summer Olympic Games Track and Field Participants
Jose Acevedo (Venezuela) — 200m dash
David Freeman (Puerto Rico) — 1500m run
Mikel Thomas (Trinidad and Tobago) — 110m hurdles
Coach Erin Tucker (Venezuela) — Guest coach
