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Running from lane seven in the final heat of the 200 meters—his pet event—Crabbe, the 2002 Central American and Caribbean Games 100-meter champion, powered past Kiribati’s Toon Annaua on his outside to lead the field off the turn and into the straight away.
With about 60 meters left, Crabbe began to limp, but made it home in 21.82 seconds in third place and the automatic qualifying spot to the quarter finals. Immediately following the event, Crabbe was taken to the Poly Clinic where it was revealed that he has a slight tear of his left hamstring.
Coach Dag Samuels pulled him out of the competition to risk further injury to the British Virgin Islands double sprint record holder, who will defend his CAC Games title in July in Colombia. Unfortunately for Crabbe, his 2002 Games debut in Manchester was hampered by an injury sustained in Northern Ireland days before the games. The injury affected him after qualifying for the quarter finals in the 200 meters. Crabbe said he had a clear mind and felt good going into the race. “After coming off the curve, I don’t want to say I relaxed a bit, but I wasn’t as aggressive because no one was there. Then one of the guys pulled besides me and when I tried to go again I just felt my hamstring,” he explained. “I tried to hold on and cross the line because they were taking the top three to the next round.”
He said after doing an ultra sound, he was told he could were a bandaged or have it splinted to run in the next round. They also told him if he ran, there was a 50% chance he could do greater damage, that’s when Samuels made the decision to pull him from the competition.
Prior to his debut at the last games in Manchester, Crabbe was injured in his final tune up competition in Northern Ireland. “The only thing is I came into Manchester with the injury, but it’s really disappointing, especially when you had everyone else from the group doing well,” he said. “But, it’s a part of track and field. I guess Tortola is probably sick of hearing that. However, I was actually looking forward to making it to the finals here. It’s not a good feeling to make it through a round and not be able to compete. I don’t think it gets any worst than that,” he added after watching his race on television from the team’s apartment.
After rehabilitating, Crabbe will begin to focus on the Central American and Caribbean Games in Cartagena, Colombia, July 15-30. He finds himself in a similar position to 2002. “I will have a lot more motivation than coming here,” he said. © Copyright 2007 BVI Olympic Committee |
