The Athletics Federation of India (AFI) on Wednesday signed Jamaica's Jerry Lee Holness as the new coach of the Indian women's 400m and 400m hurdles teams, according to Olympics.com.
Earlier, Holness was also the mentor of former Olympic and world champions Elaine Thompson-Herah and Nesta Carter. In the Rio Olympics 2016, Elaine Thompson-Herah won the gold medal in the 100m and 200m races. She is also considered one of the best women's athletes in the world. However, the Jamaican missed the 2024 Paris Olympics due to an injury. According to Olympics.com, Holness is a World Athletics Level 5 certified coach and has also worked with the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the Cayman Islands national teams. Holness joined the National Centre of Excellence (NCoE) at the Lakshmibai National College of Physical Education (LNCPE) in Thiruvananthapuram, as reported by Olympics.com. Earlier in January, Bahadur Singh Sagoo was elected as the new president of the Athletics Federation of India (AFI). The Asian Games shot put medallist replaced the outgoing Adille Sumariwalla as the president of the Indian athletics federation. Sagoo was elected as the new president during the Annual General Assembly Meeting of the federation in Chandigarh. Sagoo is a one-time Asian medallist and two-time national champion. The 51-year-old won a gold medal in the 2002 Busan Asian Games in the shot put. He also competed in the 2000 and 2004 Olympics. His best attempt of 20.40m came in 2004 in Koncha-Zaspa, Kyiv. The new Athletics boss will have his hands full with India set to host the World Athletics Continental Tour level event for the first time on August 10. (ANI)
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