Glasgow 2014: The Jamaican university that changed athletics

“It is our system that is producing the results.”

To understand that system, Davis believes we have to go back to the late 1940s and the days of Olympic medallist Herb McKenley.

Jamaican athletes were growing up through the prestigious high school ‘Champs’ before moving to America to pursue their careers on the track and to escape poverty.

Dennis Johnson, a former 100 yards world record holder, was one of them. The Olympian was at San Jose State University and was taught by “Bud” Winter, one of the most celebrated coaches of all time.

When his time in the US ended, Johnson headed back to Jamaica with the dream of developing world class athletes at home.

In 1971, he started a programme at the College of Art, Science and Technology (Cast) in Kingston with the support of its principal Dr Alfred Sangster.

Johnson started training with 10 athletes, including a 20-year-old Davis, who had never run before, and introduced them to sprinting techniques that were unknown in Jamaica.

“‘Bud’ Winter was a master coach,” reflects Johnson, now 75. “I decided to come back home and bring his methodology to training sprinters in Jamaica.

“Herb McKenley coached me in high school. What he did when he came back to Jamaica was spread the gospel of track and field. I just wanted to be like him.”

One of the key elements for Johnson was the theme of relaxation in sprinting.

He adds: “If you ever watch the 100m, the guy who is winning is relaxed. The guys who are second/third are very stiff. They are working very hard, but they still come in second. If I tell you to stop running after 60 or 70 metres, they say: ‘Come on Mr Johnson, are you crazy, I am trying to win this thing’.