Christopher Taylor says he will decide later this week which event he will contest at the JAAA National Senior Championships, set for June 26–29, after completing one final race to test his readiness. The 25-year-old sprinter spoke following his second-place finish in the 200m at the Racers Grand Prix, held last Saturday, June 7, at the National Stadium in Kingston.
“I think I’ll come and do another meet (next week) so I can finally decide what event I’ll be doing at the national championship and move forward from there,” Taylor said after clocking 20.39 seconds in what was his first 200m race in nearly three years.
The race came just weeks after Taylor opened his season with a 45.66 run over 400m at the same venue. Despite the time away, the former Calabar standout was encouraged by his execution.
“I was able to come and give it another shot at my career,” he said. “Execution was good. I could have come off the curve a little better and lined up down the straight, but I’m still pleased with the performance.”
Taylor, a 2021 Olympic 400m finalist, acknowledged the physical challenges of his comeback.
“My body is taking a while to adjust, I must say,” he admitted. “I’m having other difficulties with training, so I know that competition will be tough. But I just said, hey—I’m going to come out here and compete, because competition is the only thing that will help me get to where I need to be.”
Whether he chooses to focus on the 200m or return to his primary 400m event at Nationals, Taylor remains one of Jamaica’s most versatile sprint talents heading into the crucial qualifying meet for the 2025 World Athletics Championships in Tokyo, Japan this September.
