Stratford's Andrew Pozzi will utilise past experiences to inspire him to a medal in tonight's Commonwealth Games 110m hurdles final
ANDREW Pozzi believes the lessons learnt from the heartache suffered at the 2018 Commonwealth Games will stand him in good stead for tonight’s (Thursday) 110m hurdles final at the Alexander Stadium.
The Stratford star was looking a good bet for a medal on the Gold Coast four years ago but a mistake at the first hurdle meant he was always playing catch-up and would cross the line sixth, declaring at the time: “I’d rather not see the replays.”
Older, wiser and more experienced, the now 30-year-old told the Herald the disappointment in Australia was a valuable learning curve and that he will be able to utilise that know-how this time around.
“With the stage that I’m at in my career, it’s so important to utilise those past experiences,” he said following his third-placed finish in heat one on Tuesday night.
“That’s something that will be a real advantage for me. There’s no point having those experiences if you don’t build on them and use them.
“I’m delighted to be here and I’ll push as hard as I can in the final.”
It’s not been the best of seasons for the former Alcester Grammar School student and he understandably played it conservatively in Tuesday’s heat.
Having the second-fastest reaction time, Pozzi settled into a rhythm and a clean run saw him come home third in 13.41s, edging out Barbados’s Shane Brathwaite to the last automatic qualification place by 0.01s.
Jamaica’s Hansle Parchment stormed to victory in 13.33s with team-mate Orlando Bennett crossing the line in 13.40s to take second.
Reflecting on his performance on Tuesday night, Pozzi told the Herald: “I feel really good. My warm-up went really well.
“It’s so important in the hurdles to stay safe and in control. I knew at halfway I was going really well and felt good, so I made sure I was safe with the barriers rather than pushing on in the race.
“That’s not going to be possible to do [in the final] to contend for medals, so it’s all about turning it up slightly and give it a bit more intensity but I feel really capable.”
He added: “The second half [of the race] was a little closer than I would have liked in the end. The times were quick but we all start from a clean slate on Thursday.”
Having endured the pain and heartache down under, Pozzi admits it “would mean absolutely everything” to win a medal in Birmingham.
“I’m so unbelievably proud to stand here and welcome the world to Birmingham because this is just phenomenal,” he said.
“Never in my wildest dreams when I was growing up and racing here at the age of 12 and 13 in the Midland Championships did I envisage this happening.
“I’m exceptionally grateful to have this experience and all my thanks go out to all the people that are here.”
110m hurdles final (9.45pm)
Lane 1: Shane Brathwaite (Barbados)
Lane 2: Nicholas Hough (Australia)
Lane 3: Hansle Parchment (Jamaica)
Lane 4: Joshua Zeller (England)
Lane 5: Orlando Bennett (Jamaica)
Lane 6: Rasheed Broadbell (Jamaica)
Lane 7: Milan Trajkovic (Cyprus)
Lane 8: Andrew Pozzi (England)
