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World Indoor Athletics Championships – China, March 21
22/03/2025 00:00, In Blog /
Jeremiah Azu completed a Grand Slam of Welsh, British, European and World indoor 60m titles in China on Friday afternoon.
All this has come in the three months since the Cardiff Athletics sprinter returned home to team-up with his former coach Helen James and her training group in the capital after two years based in Italy.
Speaking after the final, a clearly emotional Azu praised the influence of James and the support of family and friends in Cardiff.
Jeremiah Azu, told the BBC:
It’s so important to surround yourself with people that care about you,
If I came last today it would have been the same. It’s huge for me.
Family is everything to me and I sacrificed that for the last two years
Azu, who has also become a dad for the first time since winning the European title, added:
I think it’s important for you to learn a lot about yourself off the track. I grew as a person and I grew as an athlete.
Being back with my family, being back with Helen, having that support team around me is huge. They allow me to believe in myself.
That’s something you can’t teach someone. It’s a feeling, you just can’t teach it. It’s so important to success, it’s so important to the formula to win. You need that team, you need that belief.
The 23-year-old certainly had belief as he blasted to victory in an eventful final at the World Indoor Athletics Championships in Nanjing.
Running in lane six, Azu didn’t let a fall by Puerto Rico’s Eloy Benitez in the next lane to distract him in the early stages.
Leading the field going into the final few metres, he managed to hold off the challenge of Australia’s Lachlan Kennedy to claim gold by 100th of a second. South Africa’s Akani Simbine was third in 6.54.
The winning time of 6.49 matched Azu’s personal best and the Welsh record he holds with another Welsh world indoor champion from Cardiff – Colin Jackson.
The victory see Azu join Jason Gardener, Dwain Chambers and Richard Kilty as the Britons to have won this title. The gold medal is the 21st to be won by Great Britain at the world indoors.
The close finish meant Azu was reluctant to celebrate too early, but once he got the nod, he let out a triumphant roar and set off on another sprint around the track.
Azu, also said:
To be fair, compared to the Europeans, I had more of a feeling I had won this time, but I didn’t want to start celebrating because you’ve seen that happen too many times, so I just waited and, yeah, when I saw it was me I just exploded.
A tearful Azu, went on to share:
Honestly, it was just raw emotion,
I was a bit emotional before the final with my coach. I think the last two years have been very difficult for me.
I was thinking about it, reflecting that it’s so important to surround yourself with people that believe in you.
Azu said that support can be the difference between winning and losing. Anyone there could have won it and they allowed me to believe it was me. I ran my PB, I ran the best I’ve ever run, again. And that’s just huge for me. My team is amazing, truly.
Azu started his challenge in the early hours of the morning UK time. A fast start meant he cruised through to win his heat comfortably in 6.53.
Afterwards, the new dad said the birth of his son had taken his mind off competing and he was feeling fresh coming into these championships following his win in the Netherlands.
The semi-final saw Azu in relaxed and confident mood, singing on the start line as the athletes were introduced to the crowd.
And it showed in his performance as he once again crossed the line clear of the field, shaving 100th of a second off his winning time of 6.53 in the heats.
On his ability to produce consistent performances throughout the rounds in the Netherlands and in China,
Azu said:
It’s huge to be able to go faster and faster and faster.
Some of the guys went super-fast in the heats and then couldn’t bring it back. It’s about the final, it’s about doing it when it matters. I’m glad I’ve got the ability to do that, the ability to win.
Azu again gave credit to coach James, who started coaching him as a teenager, for helping to nurture that winning mentality.
Truly, it’s the people around me who inspire me in so many different ways. This one definitely goes to Helen. I wouldn’t be here without her.
I knew I could come here and win it. I don’t think there’s ever been a European and a World Champion in the same year, so that’s a bit of history there.
Looking ahead to the outdoor season and the World Athletics Championships in September,
Azu said:
I’m excited for the future. Like I said at Europeans, I want to take over the world, so this is just the start of my journey.
I’ve been back with her (James) for three months now, imagine what six more months looks like, imagine what four, five years looks like. The plan is to just keep on winning.
It’s given me massive confidence. I’m just excited now, I want to get out there and race. The sky’s the limit as people say. But I don’t think the sky’s the limit, I think there’s way more than that.
For us it’s just about going back and reflecting, I’m sure there’s parts of that race where I can be better. Let’s see what the summer brings, I’m excited for it.