by Larry Eder
David Oliver in shape of a sub-13-second 110m Hurdles race in Doha
Doha 06.05.2014 – Followers of IDL Doha 2014 Facebook page www.facebook.com/dldoha enjoyed a second Live Chat session, this time with the US 110m Hurdler, David Oliver, the World Champion of the event. David, who was one of the first athletes to arrive in Doha, feels confident and he is really looking forward to compete in Qatar Sports Club, the place which brings him wonderful memories, as this was the Stadium he first dipped under 13 seconds.
Find out in bullet points what were David’s replies on the prospect of repeating that feat in Doha, what other targets he has set for this season, what is the biggest hurdle he had to overcome in his life, who he considers as the best ever high hurdles athlete and much more…
Season and lifetime goals
I am Glad to be back! I definitely have good memories from Doha. This was the first place I ran 12 seconds in my career. That will always be a great memory.
I hope I am in a shape to run under 13secs again here in Doha. It’s always very hard for me to predict a time as the hurdle event is always unpredictable. The things I have been doing in training and the few competitions I have had indicate that I am in shape for that, I just have to have the competitive composure to put it all together at the same time.
My goal this season is always the same every year, to run as fast as I can and win every race. That doesn’t happen of course, but that’s what I strive for. Another goal for 2014 is to win my third Diamond League title, I think that is the major event I have on my calendar this season seeing I don’t have a big time championship this season.
An Olympic title is of course the main target! Most of my life goals at this moment are all sports related, but when I retire, I will segue into the next segment of my life and set some new life goals.
Training regime, nutrition
I have given up lifting weights in the traditional sense of it. I believe that was one of the major reasons I was getting injured all of the time, so fall of 2012, I gave it up aside from dead lifting occasionally. But when I was lifting everyday, I could bench press 225, 19 times and squat 310, 10 times. That’s pretty much it. Now I’m specifically lifting on the strength boards.
I don’t spend much time doing hurdle drills oddly enough. I think I achieve a low flight time because I really focus on my lead leg mechanics.
I don’t do anything special or have any rituals before going out to race. I’m not that type of athlete really. I just like to get out on the track and compete.
I am not very specific on the nutrition really. I just try to make sure my plate is colourful like the rainbow. That’s something my coach is big on and that’s kind of what I do. I do intake a lot of protein as well and if I’m not really training, I keep my carb intake low too.
I have never run the 100m before actually. I think I can go at least 10.5, I would hope. I’m not really that fast as far as leg speed. If they ever took the 110 hurdles out of the sport, I’d have to start circulating my resume because I couldn’t do anything else…
About David Oliver
I am not exactly sure what I would consider the biggest hurdle I’ve ever overcome, but I would say when I decided to embark on this journey to becoming a professional sportsman, things were very tough for me. That adjustment from being on college, where everything was taken care of, to now being on my own was difficult. I didn’t have any type of sponsorship or Nike contracts at the time, so I was working eight hours a day, then going to train and lift weights everyday for nearly three years before I fully got on in the sport. I think that having that as my background is what keeps me grounded as well.
In 2005 I was working at the Nike Store at the Premium Outlets in Orlando. In ’06-’07 I was working in the stock room at a Finish Line in the mall and later in ’07 at Home Depot. Those were the places that were kind of flexible with the hours so I could train and be able to take time off to go to competition.
I am not sure I have a specific advantage over my competitors. I believe I am very strong mentally as well as physically and that helps me overcome any shortcomings I think.
Preferences
I follow a lot of sports very closely. I love sports! NFL, NBA, World Football specifically. I am a huge fan of the Miami Dolphins, Denver Nuggets and Arsenal.
Allen Johnson is the Greatest Hurdler of All Time, easily. His consistent level of performance throughout his career is the main reason I consider him the best. Couple that with his Olympic gold, countless world titles, still the all-time sub13 man and he’s second to none in my book. He may have never held the world record, but at the end of the day that’s only one.
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