by Jeff Benjamin
Jeff Benjamin and Donavan Brazier, photo by Jeff Benjamin
Awaiting The Baton In The Relay Exchange Zone – Profiles Of Athletes, Coaches & Legends During The War Against Corona
Profile # 37
U.S. Champion & Top NIKE Athlete Donovan Brazier
By Jeff Benjamin
Donavan Brazier, 2020 NYRR Millrose Games, photo by Cortney White
Donavan Brazier won the 2019 Doha WC at 800 meters. His race, was well, brilliant! After hitting the 400m in about 48.9, Donavan took the lead at 500 meters and built the biggest lead in WC history, setting a new AR, breaking Johnny Gray’s iconic record!
We thank Donavan for his thoughts on the challenges to athletes and coaches in the modern plague.
How is your daily training routine doing and how challenging has it been for you in this environment?
“Since the covid-19 outbreak has reached american soil, things started to slowly change. For me personally it went from not being able to have access to medical staff to not having access to Nikes’ weight room on campus to now inevitable not having access to any Nike or public facilities. All of which was necessary in order to combat this pandemic. but this has resulted in my group and I having to be flexible when it comes to training and following CDC guideline of who and where you can train. We’ve found ourselves public tracks and have access-to many trails, so for now things continue on as usual and we keep pressing but also prepare for a long season ahead.”
Donavan Brazier, 2020 NB Indoor photo by Mike Deering / The Shoe Addicts
What advice can you give to runners, -especially youth, high school, collegiate- who are challenged during this time as well?
“I’d say for athletes who are upset about our current athletic and competition state, that they need to take a look at the bigger picture of things. Realize that these drastic decisions that were made ultimately put into place for the safety and greater good for our community. Though I do understand the uncertainty that lies ahead can be very frustrating. We must do out best to improvise and make do with the current situation we are in. I’ve continued to run and gone about my training as best as I can and I would advise people to try and do the same while following CDC guidelines.”
Donavan Brazier, 2020 NB Indoor photo by Mike Deering / The Shoe Addicts
