Calvin Smith´s son to run in the 400m race in Barcelona

11/07/2008

Calvin Smith Jr, son of the legendary US sprinter Calvin Smith, who was  world champion twice and world record holder in the 80s, will take part in the 400m race in the International Meeting Ciutat de Barcelona. Smith has a personal record of 45.14 and at his age (21 years old) he is considered as one of the strongest hopes of the US Athletics in this hard discipline.
 
He was born on 10 October 1987 when his father was the king of the 100m events. Smith has chosen the 400m keeping a process of constant improvement what it is expected to take him to be one of the best athletes in the world in this distance. He got 46.17 in 2006, 45.52 last year and 45.15 in 2008 what unfortunately has not been enough for him to be part of the US team so that to have the chance of participating in the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games.
 
Smith will compete in Barcelona against Reggie Whiterspoon, other future star in US Sprint. Whiterspoon was fourth in the US Trials of Omaha in 45.01and beat Smith, who was in the fifth position (45.57) so, he did not have any chance to go to the Olympics.
 
His father was one of the greatest last century sprinters. He won the world championships title twice, but in the 200m, and he set a world record of 9.93 in the 100m race in Colorado Spring, in altitude.