Gold medallist Pompey for Barry Massay Games
- looking forward to it By Michael DaSilva
Stabroek News
July 30, 2002

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Commonwealth Games women's 400-metre gold medallist, Aliann Pompey, is looking forward to returning to Guyana for the Barry Massay Memorial Games, slated for August 31 and September 1.

According to Guyana's Amateur Athletics Association (AAA) Senior Vice-President Neville Denny, Pompey, who was born at Ann's Grove, East Coast Demerara, and migrated to the United States at the age of 10, has been in touch with him frequently for the past year or so, and had indicated her interest in returning for the Barry Massay meet.

In an exclusive interview with Stabroek Sport yesterday, one day after Pompey snatched victory in the women's 400m at the Manchester 2002 Commonwealth Games, Denny said Pompey had told him she wanted to return for the meet even before she won the Commonwealth Gold medal.

"I haven't made contact with her since she won the gold, but I'm in contact with her everyday." He said he had sent her an e-mail recently urging her to stay focused, and after she replied enquiring about the Barry Massay Games, he advised that she should concern herself about that later on, and in the meantime just say a prayer and keep focused, Denny recalled telling Pompey.

According to Denny, the first time the two made contact with each other was at the 1999 Pan American Games in Canada where Pompey injured her hamstrings during the 400-metre event.

"The first time we made contact was at the Pan Am Games in Canada in 1999, but before that she had contacted the AAA through an AAA representative in New York and we've followed her career since then."

At that time, she was running under coach Jim Ryan who still coaches her, and she had won the American indoor 300m and still holds the 500m record. Since then she has been moving up gradually, Denny, who is also a Guyana Olympic Association (GOA) vice-president, pointed out.

Asked about his thoughts on Pompey's gold medal win, Denny said "I think it's a tremendous achievement." He observed that Pompey had shown she is an athlete of great dedication by sticking to the game, but Denny also gave credit to her coach, Ryan, who has stuck with her through all the years.

On migrating to the US, Pompey attended high school and college, where she secured a first degree in Business Administration, but took time off half way into her masters degree at Manhattan College.

"The good thing I see about it (gold medal) is that lots of people say sports and academics don't mix, or shouldn't mix, because sports would interfere with your academic performance, but this is a clear case where her academic performance went along with her athletic career. I think it gives you the will to win and it also produces a healthy body and a healthy mind," Denny commented.

What would make someone take time off from school for athletics?, Denny explained: "She took a year off school to raise money so that she can complete her studies, while at the same time continue a career in athletics."

He added: "She got linked up with a Mrs. Sanderson, who scouts for athletes to fill lanes for the junior and senior Grand Prix in Europe....you're having now the top athletes like Maurice Green and Marion Jones running in Europe, from country to country, and they get appearance money and also after winning so many events they get a grand prize, so she (Pompey) was running in the junior Grand Prix last year and won four of five races as a lane filler."

Asked to explain what a lane filler really is, Denny said: "You have your top athletes who occupy the best lanes and the lane fillers would run out of the bad lanes which are either one, two or even eight. Most times you don't have enough athletes to fill eight lanes for a race, so Sanderson selects the athletes for the person promoting the Grand Prix and she (Sanderson) decides who she wants and looks at the top performers . You might get six top performers but you still have two lanes to fill, so there is where the lane fillers come into the picture. Or, an athlete might apply, but I'm not sure if she (Pompey) applied, but I know she got in."

According to Denny, Pompey accumulated 28 points last year to win the Junior Grand Prix "but that does not qualify her for the Senior Grand Prix," Denny was quick to add, "but I think she now qualifies by winning the Commonwealth Games 400-metre event. So they might now call her for lane filling in the big one."

Denny further explained why lanes one, two and eight are the difficult lanes to run in. "The trouble is, you run in lane eight and you're running on your own, (there is) nobody to see, so you're running in front. In lane two you're never sure where you are in terms of making up the stagger, but she is a strong willed person, very unassuming, and at 24, she's like a little girl. When she was at the Pan Am in Canada, the squash boys took her in like a little sister, they used to be fetching her around because of her hamstrings. She's a likeable person who trains hard and works hard."

According to Denny, Pompey has already competed in three Junior Grand Prix events in Europe this year.

What would Pompey's gold do for Guyana's athletics? Denny stressed that "it would give a boost to athletics and kids might want to emulate her performance."

Pompey would return to college after accumulating enough money to pay for her studies or if she secures a scholarship, Denny said.

And he added: "Aliann is a solid person, a very rounded person, a disciplined person that the nation (Guyana) can be proud of."