Dacres blames injury-hit season for Paris absence

FIVE-TIME national discus champion Fedrick Dacres has revealed that a minor knee surgery prevented him from performing at his usual best at the recently concluded JAAA/Puma National Junior and Senior Championships at the National Stadium.

Dacres said that due to the surgery he was behind on his preparation which eventually cost him a spot at the upcoming Paris Olympics.

“I’ve always joked around that I’m not really an ‘Olympic thrower’ as my two Olympic Games appearances were atrocious. I did a small procedure on my knee that took me out for a while. I wasn’t doing leg work or any lifting for up to six weeks, so I was low in terms of strength. Therefore, I’m not really disappointed,” he stated.

Dacres, who participated in the Rio Olympics in 2016 and Tokyo 2020, further shared that in addition to his knees lacking the usual explosiveness his fingers were constantly contracting throughout the championships which saw him throwing a best effort of 64.46 metres, only good enough for fourth.

“To be honest I just couldn’t do any leg work and I’m normally explosive with my legs. Also, during the trials my hand was acting up because I did a surgery on my hand, so it was contracting. Throughout the season it was okay but during the trials it became a problem. I was saying I’m really not an Olympic year man,” he added.

The 2019 World Athletics Championships discus silver medallist, the first by a Jamaican, and 2018 Commonwealth Games winner, shared that at the age of 30 he believes he still has another Olympic Games cycle in his body.

“It’s all about how I feel as I believe I can make it to another Olympics. It’s about the love of the sport for me. I have a few more meets for the remainder of the season including some in the Diamond League, so that’s really it. I’m trying to take the time to heal and do some work on my hands,” Dacres, the national record holder at 70.78m, said.

The top three throwers at the national championships were Traves Smikle with 67.08 metres, Roje Stona (65.29m) and Ralford Mullings (64.92m).

orane.buchanan@gleanerjm.com