WRITTEN FOR THE IAAF WEBSITE
Having graced the medal rostrum at two of the four most recent IAAF World Championship events, long jumper Shara Proctor is keen to add to her silverware collection at the first global contest of 2016 next month.
The 27-year-old British athlete will seek to build on her fine silver medal-winning display at last summer’s world outdoor event in Beijing with a medal at the IAAF World Indoor Championships in Portland, Oregon (March 17-20), in what promises to be an exciting Olympic year for the Anguillan-born star.
Coached by Rana Reider at their Arnhem, Netherlands base, Proctor has enjoyed an encouraging start to her indoor campaign with a 6.69m best-ever season opener and two 60m sprint lifetime bests.
The British indoor and outdoor long jump record holder – with 6.89m and 7.07m, respectively – made her 2016 long jump debut, which saw her place third at the PSD Bank meeting in Düsseldorf behind Serbia’s world indoor and outdoor bronze medallist, Ivana Spanovic on February 3rd, before sprinting to 7.38 and 7.36 for third position at the Pedro’s Cup Lodz in Poland behind European junior 100m champion, Ewa Swoboda two days later.
Proctor revealed:
“I’m really pleased with my season opener in Düsseldorf – it was by far my best season opener indoors. I am fit and can definitely build on that performance throughout the season.
“It was a pleasure running the 60m in Poland – it was an amazing experience even though I felt completely out of my element.”
Fresh from a 6.50m/7.40 long jump-60m double in Eaubonne, France, Proctor will next take to the Globen Galan meeting in Stockholm and the Glasgow Indoor Grand Prix next week, ahead of contesting the British Championships in Sheffield at the end of the month to seal her selection for Portland:
“I’m definitely hoping to go to Portland – I have one goal in mind, that’s to jump far,” the University of Florida graduate explained.
A bronze medallist at the 2012 event in Istanbul and a fourth place finisher in the Sopot edition two years ago, Proctor continued:
“Once I do that, everything else will follow – the medal, a personal best. I like to keep it simple. The less I think about, the easier it is for me to compete well.”
‘Beyond surprised and ecstatic’
To say she competed well in 2015 would be quite the understatement – despite having to forgo the indoor season following a rupture of her left Rectus Femoris in the final of the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow and undergoing subsequent surgery, Proctor bounced back with vengeance in the summer.
Breaking her national record no less than three times – with 6.95 in Doha in May, 6.98m in London in July and 7.07m en-route to the silver medal in Beijing in August – Proctor additionally leapt to two IAAF Diamond League victories in London and Birmingham, and five top-three places in the series in Doha, Rome, New York, Lausanne and Zurich.
Having eclipsed the illusive 7-meter barrier twice in Beijing – with the addition of a 7.01m leap in the final – Proctor consequently flew to the second spot on the 2015 world list and 38th position in the world all-time marks, capping off a superb campaign.
“I was beyond surprised and ecstatic after my season last year,” the 2013 IAAF Diamond League series winner recalled:
“It took me a while to process everything and feel real emotion from the outcome of my season. I didn’t know what to expect going into the season and especially since I opened up in such an elite field in Doha.
“I felt blessed to end the season healthy so breaking the record three times was the icing on the cake.”
Eager to enjoy a well-earned rest and celebrate with her loved ones, Proctor then travelled to Las Vegas, Hawaii, New York and home to Anguilla, where she celebrated her birthday with family for the first time in ten years.
Amsterdam and Rio podiums the aim
A former triple jumper with bests of 13.74m indoors and 13.88m outdoors, Proctor is part of an impressive training group at the Papendal Olympic training centre which includes the USA’s three-time world long jump and two-time world 60m champion, Tianna Bartoletta and Olympic and world triple jump champion, Christian Taylor of the USA.
On the squad and her recent winter grind, she explained:
“My training group also includes Tiffany Porter, Anyika Onuora, Beate Schrott, Churandy Martina and Ignacious Gaisah – it’s a pretty talented, professional, and hard working group of athletes, there’s a lot to learn from them.
“My winter training went really well – I’m most happy that I’m injury free – knocks on wood!
“We had a training camp in Bradenton, Florida at the IMG academy and I have been doing a lot of running and speed work.
“Having Tianna (the 2015 world long jump leader with 7.14m) as a training partner is perfect because she’s a world class sprinter so I learned a few things from her.
“I was eager for the experience to contest the 60m because it’s a new challenge and it’s exciting for me to step out of my comfort zone.”
With the plan to go back to Florida for another training camp after Portland and then to compete in the IAAF Diamond League once again, Proctor also hopes to participate at July’s European Championships ahead of the Olympic Games in Rio the following month:
“In the five years that I have been representing Great Britain, I have never competed at the European Championships,” she revealed.
“This year, I really hope I can especially because it’s in Amsterdam – our group is based an hour away from the stadium so it’s almost like home for me.”
On her Olympic ambitions, the London 2012 finalist continued:
“I hope to make Rio a special one – my ultimate aim is definitely to get on the podium.
“First, I will focus on executing everything I have been working on with my coach, then everything else will follow.
“Last year boosted my confidence in a major way – I now know what I am capable of and I hope to build on last year’s performances.
“However, I think that in order for me to succeed this year, I have to put last year’s triumphs on the back burner so that I can train and compete like an underdog.”
And with the sweet taste of success still fresh in her mind, you could forgive Proctor for attacking Portland, Amsterdam and Rio like a dog with a bone between her teeth.
