Keston Bledman

Last updated

Keston Bledman
Keston Bledman 2012 Olympics.jpg
Keston Bledman at the 2012 Olympics in London
Personal information
Nationality Trinidad and Tobago
Born (1988-03-08) 8 March 1988 (age 36) [1]
San Fernando, Trinidad and Tobago [1]
Height1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) [1]
Weight88 kg (194 lb) [1]
Sport
Sport Track and field
Event Sprinting
Achievements and titles
Personal best(s)100m: 9.86 (Trinidad 2012)
200m: 20.73 (Lappeenranta 2008)
Medal record
Men's Athletics
Representing Flag of Trinidad and Tobago.svg  Trinidad and Tobago
Olympic Games
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 2008 Beijing 4×100 m relay
Silver medal icon (S initial).svg 2012 London 4×100 m relay
Commonwealth Games
Bronze medal icon (B initial).svg 2014 Glasgow 4×100 m relay
Pan American Games
Silver medal icon (S initial).svg 2019 Lima 4×100 m relay
Bronze medal icon (B initial).svg 2015 Toronto 4×100 m relay
CAC Championships
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 2008 Cali 4×100 m relay
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 2009 Havanna 4×100 m relay
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 2011 Mayagüez 100 m
Silver medal icon (S initial).svg 2011 Mayagüez 4×100 m relay
Pan American Junior Championships
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 2007 São Paulo 100 m
Silver medal icon (S initial).svg 2007 São Paulo 4×100 m relay
World Youth Championships
Silver medal icon (S initial).svg 2005 Marrakech Medley relay
Bronze medal icon (B initial).svg 2005 Marrakech 100 m

Keston Bledman, HBM (born 8 March 1988) is a track and field sprint athlete, who competes internationally for Trinidad and Tobago. [2]

Contents

On 7 July 2007, at the 2007 Pan American Junior Athletics Championships in São Paulo, Brazil, he upset the Jamaican Yohan Blake in the 100 meters, finishing in 10.32 seconds (−1.1 m/s wind).

Bledman represented Trinidad and Tobago at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. He competed at the 4 × 100 m relay together with Marc Burns, Aaron Armstrong and Richard Thompson. He was the lead off man. [3] In their qualification heat they placed first in front of Japan, the Netherlands and Brazil. Their time of 38.26 was the fastest of all sixteen teams participating in the first round and they qualified for the final. Armstrong was replaced by Emmanuel Callender for the final race and they sprinted to a time of 38.06 seconds, the second time after the Jamaican team, winning the silver medal. [2] In 2022, Bledman and his teammates received the gold medal due to Jamaica's Nesta Carter testing positive for the prohibited substance methylhexaneamine. [4]

He ran in the first round, but not the final of the men's 4 × 100 m at the 2009 World Championships where Trinidad and Tobago won silver. [3]

On 4 June 2011, Bledman ran 9.93 over 100 m in Clermont, Florida, to become the 78th athlete to cross the 10-second barrier. [5] He won his first national title in June 2012 by beating Richard Thompson over 100 m and ran a personal best time of 9.86 seconds, [6] which is currently tied for the 27th fastest ever. At the 2011 World Championships, he qualified for the 100 m final as one of the fastest losers in the semi-final. [3]

He was also a member of the relay team that won a silver medal at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. [7] He was part of the Trinidad and Tobago team 4 × 100 m team that won the bronze at the 2014 Commonwealth Games. [8] He ran in the 100 m and the 4 × 100 m at the 2016 Summer Olympics. [9]

Early career

His mother lived in the US, and Bledman attributes his athletic success to wanting to do well enough to qualify for the national team and earn a visa. [3] He was recruited by Gunness Persad, who became his coach, at Pleasantville Senior Comprehensive sportsday. [3] His first international competition was the 2005 World Youth Championships, where he won an individual bronze. [3] His athletics idol is Hasely Crawford who won the 100 m at the 1976 Olympics for Trinidad and Tobago. [3]

Personal best

DistanceTimevenue
100 m9.86 s (+1.4 m/s) Port-of-Spain, Trinidad (23 June 2012)
200 m20.73 s Lappeenranta, Finland (3 August 2008)

International competitions

YearCompetitionVenuePositionEventNotes
Representing Flag of Trinidad and Tobago.svg  Trinidad and Tobago
2005 CARIFTA Games (U-20) Bacolet, Trinidad and Tobago 8th100 m10.79 (+1.7 m/s)
1st4 × 100 m relay41.05
World Youth Championships Marrakesh, Morocco 3rd100 m10.55
2ndSprint medley relay1:52.51
2006 CARIFTA Games (U-20) Les Abymes, Guadeloupe 2nd100 m10.57 (0.0 m/s)
Central American and Caribbean
Junior Championships (U-20)
Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago 2nd100 m10.39 (+1.5 m/s)
4th4 × 100 m relay40.80
World Junior Championships Beijing, China 7th100 m 10.47 (-0.5 m/s)
54th (h)200 m 25.57 (-0.6 m/s)
2007 CARIFTA Games (U-20) Providenciales, Turks and Caicos 2nd100 m10.41 (+1.2 m/s)
Pan American Junior Championships São Paulo, Brazil 1st100 m10.32
2nd4 × 100 m relay40.11
Pan American Games Rio de Janeiro, Brazil 9th (sf)100 m 10.34
4th4 × 100 m relay 39.23
World Championships Osaka, Japan 22nd (qf)100 m 10.33
2008 Central American and Caribbean Championships Cali, Colombia 10th (sf)100 m 10.38
1st4 × 100 m relay 38.54
Olympic Games Beijing, China 1st4 × 100 m relay 38.06
2009 Central American and Caribbean Championships Havana, Cuba 6th100 m 10.29
1st4 × 100 m relay 38.73
World Championships Berlin, Germany 2nd (h)4 × 100 m relay 38.47
2010 NACAC U23 Championships Miramar, Florida, United States 4th100 m 10.19 (+1.7 m/s)
Central American and Caribbean Games Mayagüez, Puerto Rico 7th100 m 10.32
1st4 × 100 m relay 38.24
2011 Central American and Caribbean Championships Mayagüez, Puerto Rico 1st100 m 10.05
2nd4 × 100 m relay 38.89
World Championships Daegu, South Korea 8th (sf)100 m 10.14
6th4 × 100 m relay 39.01
2012 Olympic Games London, United Kingdom9th (sf)100 m 10.04
2nd4 × 100 m relay 38.12
2013 World Championships Moscow, Russia 11th (sf)100 m 10.08
7th4 × 100 m relay 38.57
2014 World Relays Nassau, Bahamas 2nd4 × 100 m relay 38.04
Commonwealth Games Glasgow, United Kingdom 14th (sf)100 m 10.24
3rd4 × 100 m relay 38.10
2015 World Relays Nassau, Bahamas 7th4 × 100 m relay 38.92
Pan American Games Toronto, Canada 4th100 m 10.12
3rd4 × 100 m relay 38.69
World Championships London, United Kingdom50th (h)100 m 10.75
2016 Olympic Games Rio de Janeiro, Brazil 23rd (h)100 m 10.20
6th (h)4 × 100 m relay 37.96 1
2017 World Relays Nassau, Bahamas 11th (h)4 × 100 m relay 39.44
World Championships London, United Kingdom29th (h)100 m 10.26
9th (h)4 × 100 m relay 38.61
2018 World Indoor Championships Birmingham, United Kingdom26th (h)60 m 6.79
Commonwealth Games Gold Coast, Australia 12th (sf)100 m 10.30
4 × 100 m relay DQ
Central American and Caribbean Games Barranquilla, Colombia 12th (sf)100 m 10.35
4th4 × 100 m relay 38.90
2019 Pan American Games Lima, Peru 8th100 m 10.43
2nd4 × 100 m relay 38.46

1Disqualified in the final

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ato Boldon</span> Trinidadian Olympic sprinter and politician

Ato Jabari Boldon is a Trinidadian former track and field athlete, politician, and four-time Olympic medal winner. He holds the Trinidad and Tobago national record in the 50, 60 and 200 metres events with times of 5.64, 6.49 and 19.77 seconds respectively, and also the Commonwealth Games record in the 100 m. He also held the 100m national record at 9.86s, having run it four times until Richard Thompson ran 9.85s on 13 August 2011.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Darvis Patton</span> American sprinter

Darvis "Doc" Darell Patton is a retired American track and field athlete who competed in sprinting events. He is a two-time US Champion in the 200-meter dash and won the silver medal in the event at the 2003 World Championships. He is a three-time Olympian and a four-time participant at the World Athletics Championships.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Veronica Campbell Brown</span> Jamaican sprinter (born 1982)

Veronica Campbell Brown Order of Distinction is a retired Jamaican track and field sprinter, who specialized in the 100 and 200 meters. An eight-time Olympic medalist, she is the second of three women in history to win two consecutive Olympic 200 m events, after Bärbel Wöckel of Germany at the 1976 and 1980 Olympics and fellow countrywoman Elaine Thompson-Herah at the 2016 and 2020 Olympics. Campbell Brown is one of only nine athletes to win world championships at the youth, junior, and senior level of an athletic event.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marc Burns</span> Trinidad and Tobago sprinter

Marc Burns is an athlete from Trinidad and Tobago specializing in the 100 metres and the 4 x 100 metres relay.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">4 × 100 metres relay</span> Track and field relay event covering 400 metres

The 4 × 100 metres relay or sprint relay is an athletics track event run in lanes over one lap of the track with four runners completing 100 metres each. The first runners must begin in the same stagger as for the individual 400 m race. Each runner carries a relay baton. Before 2018, the baton had to be passed within a 20 m changeover box, preceded by a 10-metre acceleration zone. With a rule change effective November 1, 2017, that zone was modified to include the acceleration zone as part of the passing zone, making the entire zone 30 metres in length. The outgoing runner cannot touch the baton until it has entered the zone, and the incoming runner cannot touch it after it has left the zone. The zone is usually marked in yellow, frequently using lines, triangles or chevrons. While the rule book specifies the exact positioning of the marks, the colours and style are only "recommended". While most legacy tracks will still have the older markings, the rule change still uses existing marks. Not all governing body jurisdictions have adopted the rule change.

Darrel Rondel Brown is a sprinter from Trinidad and Tobago who specializes in the 100 metres and the 200 metres.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aaron Armstrong</span> American track and field sprint athlete

Aaron Nigel Armstrong is a track and field sprint athlete who competes internationally for Trinidad and Tobago. He is the 2008 Olympic champion in 4 × 100 metres relay.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jared Connaughton</span> Canadian sprinter (born 1985)

Jared Connaughton is a Canadian former track athlete who specialized in the 100m and 200m. He is now a physical education cross country, and track and field coach at Fort Worth Country Day in Fort Worth, Texas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Richard Thompson (sprinter)</span> Trinidadian athlete

Richard "Torpedo" Thompson is a sprinter from Trinidad and Tobago who specializes in the 100 metres. His personal best of 9.82 seconds, set in June 2014, was one of the top ten fastest of all time, and a national record. In the 200 meters, he has the fourth fastest time by a Trinidad and Tobago athlete.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nesta Carter</span> Jamaican sprinter (born 1985)

Nesta Carter OD is a retired Jamaican sprinter who specialized in the 100 metres event. Carter was successful as part of the Jamaican 4 x 100 metres relay team, taking gold and setting successive world records at the 2011 World Championships and 2012 London Olympics. He also won a 4 x 100m silver medal at the 2007 World Championship and a gold at the 2015 World Championships. On August 11, 2013, Carter secured an individual 100m World Championship bronze medal in Moscow, behind Justin Gatlin and teammate Usain Bolt. He followed this with another gold in the 4 x 100 metres relay.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Trinidad and Tobago at the 2008 Summer Olympics</span> Sporting event delegation

Trinidad and Tobago sent a delegation to compete at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, China. Its participation in the Beijing games marked its eighteenth Olympic appearance and fifteenth Summer Olympic appearance since its debut at the 1948 Summer Olympics in London, excluding its joint participation with Jamaica and Barbados in 1960 as the West Indies Federation. With 28 athletes, more Trinidadians had competed at the Olympics than in any other single Olympic Games in its history before Beijing. Athletes representing Trinidad and Tobago advanced past the preliminary or qualification rounds in twelve events and reached the final rounds in four of those events. Of those four events, silver medals were won in the men's 100 meters and in the men's 4x100 meters relay. The latter was upgraded to gold due to one member of the quartet that crossed the line first, Nesta Carter, testing positive for a banned substance, resulting in their disqualification. The nation's flag bearer at the opening ceremony that year was swimmer and Athens medalist George Bovell.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Emmanuel Callender</span> Trinidad and Tobago sprinter

Emmanuel Earl Callender is a track and field sprint athlete, who competes internationally for Trinidad and Tobago.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kelly-Ann Baptiste</span> Trinidad and Tobago sprinter

Kelly-Ann Kaylene Baptiste is a Tobagonian track and field sprint athlete.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rondel Sorrillo</span> Trinidad and Tobago sprinter

Rondel Kelvin Sorrillo is a Trinidad and Tobago sprinter, who specializes in the 200 meters. He was the first University of Kentucky athlete to win the men's 200 m title at the NCAA championships, winning it in 2010.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Trinidad and Tobago at the 2012 Summer Olympics</span> Sporting event delegation

Trinidad and Tobago competed at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, United Kingdom from 27 July to 12 August 2012. This was Trinidad and Tobago's most successful Summer Olympics. It was the nation's largest ever delegation sent to the Olympics, with a total of 30 athletes, 21 men and 9 women, in 6 sports. Trinidad and Tobago's participation in these games marked its sixteenth Olympic appearance as an independent nation, although it had previously competed in four other games as a British colony, and as part of the West Indies Federation. The nation was awarded four Olympic medals based on the efforts by the athletes who competed in the track and field. Javelin thrower Keshorn Walcott became the first Trinidadian athlete to win an Olympic gold medal since the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal, where Hasely Crawford won for the sprint event. Marc Burns, a four-time Olympic athlete and a relay sprinter who led his team by winning the silver medal in Beijing, was the nation's flag bearer at the opening ceremony.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lalonde Gordon</span> Trinidad and Tobago sprinter

Lalonde Keida Gordon, HBM is a Tobagonian male track and field sprinter who specialises in the 400 metres. He won the bronze medal at the 2012 London Olympics with a personal best of 44.52 seconds. He is the third fastest 400 m runner from his country after Machel Cedenio and Ian Morris.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zharnel Hughes</span> British sprinter

Zharnel Hughes is an Anguilla-born British sprinter who specialises in the 100 metres and 200 metres. Born and raised in the British Overseas Territory of Anguilla, he has competed internationally for Great Britain in the Olympic Games, World Athletics and European Athletics events, and for England at the Commonwealth Games, since 2015. A double Commonwealth Games, double European Championships gold medalist as part of the 4 x 100 metres relay, Hughes has twice been European champion individually; over 100 metres in 2018, and 200 metres in 2022. In 2023, he broke both British sprint records, before winning his first global individual medal, a bronze in the 100 metres at the 2023 World championships.

The 4 × 100 metres relay at the Summer Olympics is the shortest track relay event held at the multi-sport event. The men's relay has been present on the Olympic athletics programme since 1912 and the women's event has been continuously held since the 1928 Olympic Games in Amsterdam. It is the most prestigious 4×100 m relay race at elite level.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Athletics at the 2016 Summer Olympics – Men's 4 × 100 metres relay</span>

The men's 4 × 100 metres relay competition at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil was held at the Estádio Olímpico Nilton Santos on 18–19 August.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">4 × 100 metres relay at the World Athletics Championships</span>

The 4×100 metres relay at the World Championships in Athletics has been contested by both men and women since the inaugural edition in 1983. It is the second most prestigious title in the discipline after the 4×100 metres relay at the Olympics. The competition format typically has one qualifying round leading to a final between eight teams. As of 2015, nations can qualify for the competition through a top eight finish at the previous IAAF World Relays event, with the remaining teams coming through the more traditional route of ranking highly on time in the seasonal lists. This system was modified due to the postponement of 2023 World Athletics Relays to 2024: therefore, the eight teams directly qualified are those of the 2022 World Championships, in Eugene, completed by eight more 2022-2023 top lists' teams.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Keston Bledman". Olympedia.org. OlyMADmen . Retrieved 12 November 2022.
  2. 1 2 "Athlete biography: Keston Bledman". Beijing2008.cn . Archived from the original on 9 September 2008. Retrieved 29 August 2008.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Laurence, Kwame. "IAAF: Keston Bledman | Profile - Focus on Athletes Biography". iaaf.org. Archived from the original on 10 September 2013. Retrieved 11 July 2017.
  4. "Medal reallocation in action: Trinidad and Tobago get men's 4x100m relay gold from Beijing 2008". International Olympic Committee . 5 July 2022. Retrieved 7 July 2022.
  5. "Tyson Gay runs world-best 100 this year in Clermont". Orlando Sentinel. 4 June 2011. Archived from the original on 6 September 2012.
  6. Lawrence, Kwame (25 June 2012). Bledman wins Trinidad and Tobago title in 9.86. IAAF. Retrieved on 9 July 2012.
  7. "London 2012 4x100m relay men Results - Olympic athletics".
  8. "Glasgow 2014 - Keston Bledman Profile". g2014results.thecgf.com (in Spanish). Retrieved 11 July 2017.
  9. "Men's 100m". 22 August 2016. Archived from the original on 22 August 2016. Retrieved 11 July 2017.