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Herbert Morrison’s Daley will not be stopped by car accident
March 13, 2023
Herbert Morrison Comprehensive High's DeAndre Daley is more determined to achieve his personal goals, not only for the ISSA/GraceKennedy Boys and Girls' Athletics Championships (Champs), but also regionally in defending his Carifta Games under-20 boys' 100m title, after walking away from a car accident two months ago.
Daley finished second behind Kingston College's (KC) Bouwahjgie Nkrumie in 10.37 seconds in Saturday's under-20 boys' 100m final, with Nkrumie clocking 10.18 for victory. Daley had to storm through the line in his first-round heat, recovering from a bad start to power through and make the final.
It has been a season where he has had to bounce back from adversaries, as he and his teammate Andre Daley (no relation) were involved in a car accident in January in Hanover. They were, according to coach Claude Grant, seen by a doctor for medical attention before returning to school.
For Daley, he didn't need much to get back into his routine, as he calls track and field his safe space, to bounce back quickly.
"Track and field is my comfort zone. After the accident, I went to training, conditioned my mind and focused on the season and pushed through," Daley said.
"It was definitely easy because I just wanted to get back out there and go to training. The day after the accident, I had a track meet. I had to sit it out and take some rest and go back to training."
While the talk has been about Nkrumie, who has clocked faster times this season, Daley has quietly been having a solid campaign, having clocked 10.26 seconds on February 15 at Western Championships.
He is happy to make the Carfita team and be able to defend his title, as he had to do more than expected at the trials after a difficult first round.
"I really didn't think about it necessarily, but I managed to put that behind me and come out here and make the team," Daley said.
Despite the scare from the accident, Daley says he can still deliver his best in two weeks when Champs begins, and is adamant about Herbert Morrison's intentions this season.
"I am still working on it, but first, I want to finish healthy; second, to beat my personal best (10.26) and for me to win the national title," Daley said. "We (Herbert Morrison) will definitely be competing for every event out there and hope to win most of the events."
