Lucy Hatton is one of Britian’s finest hurdlers. In March 2015, she had her moment of zen, and took the silver medal in Prague, at the European Indoor Champs.
At the Manchester City Games presser, I intereviewd Lucy Hatton and Tiffany Porter, and what an exciting conversation ensued.
Here is my feature on Lucy Hatton.
Lucy Hatton, photo by Larry Eder
In March 2015, Lucy Hatton became the European Indoor silver medalist at the 60 meter hurdles. She had not been a hurdler long, but everything worked well in Prague, and she scored two PBs in the event.
Lucy has learnt some hard lessons since then, with injuries, the uncertainties of being an elite athlete, and moving from the 60 meter hurdles to the 100 meter hurdles. “The indoor and outdoor races are completely different. It will propbabl take me a couple of more years to understand the (100 meter) hurdles.”
Lucy Hatton, photo by PhotoRun.net
Lucy speaks with a self knowledge that this writer appreciated, but was startled that she was just twenty-one. “My first experience at track was when I was nine. I ran the race, and went home and told my family that I had just won the Olympics!” smiled Ms. Hatton, as we discussed the hurdles.
When I asked Lucy Hatton about the high quality of British women hurdlers, and why the 100 meter hurdles is such a tough event, week in, week out during the season, Lucy responded, “Because women are fiece.”
This comment was said matter of factly. Lucy Hattons’ origins in sport were about findng something that gave her happyness. School has been difficult for Lucy Hatton, who has been challenged by dyslexia. Her parents encouraged Lucy to find sports, and she found something that made her feel good and used her many talents.
Recently, like three weeks ago, Lucy Hatton changed coaches. She is now working with Toni Minichiello, the esteemed coach of Jessi Ennis-Hill, among others.
Lucy Hatton has run with and without a coach. She realizes that she needed a change in environment for her to grow as a hurdler. ” I race better out of the local area.” noted Lucy.
So, on Friday night, May 13, Lucy Hatton will take on Tiffany Porter, Serita Solomon and Isabelle Pedersen, from Norway. Hurdling over 100 meters, focused on one hurdle after another, Lucy Hatton will use her fierceness to become the best hurdler that she can be.
This writer believes that we will see Lucy Hatton for many years to come. Lucy’s uniquly coiffed hair, her mystical tatooes illustrating a young women confident of her body, spirit and athleticism, as she journeys to see just how fast she can run over 100 meters and ten hurdles.
