CUTHBERT
THESE DAYS Juliet Cuthbert is just as busy as when she ran track. The age-defying 41-year-old recently opened her own wellness centre, One-on-One Fitness Studio, she is the physical trainer of National Premier League club Arnett Gardens and has a broadcasting stint as co-host of Scoreboard on KLAS FM.
Seven years after hanging up her spikes, Cuthbert discovered what her life would be like after the Olympics and Grand Prix circuit.
She admits life was awkward after she was forced to retire early due to an achilles tendon injury in 1998.
"Running track was all I did." she said.
A graduate of the University of Texas with a Bachelor Degree in Psychology, Cuthbert held several odd jobs in the United States, which included managing events with World Championship Wrestling (WCW).
A deep yearning soon beckoned inside and she returned home in 2001. She worked with Western Sports for two years as a marketing manager for the Puma brand.
PRACTICAL USE
But the certified personal trainer finally decided to put her qualifications and 19 years of track experience to practical use and indulge in what she loved the most apart from running.
Along with former Barbados football player Nicholas Pitt, who is also a certified personal trainer, both opened the doors of One-on-One Fitness Studio on Waterloo Road, Kingston four weeks ago.
Looking as good as she did when she was competing, Cuthbert spoke to The Gleaner about her career and life after track.
Q: How has life been since you retired?
Juliet Cuthbert: Up and down but for the most part I've been content. The first couple of years after retiring were pretty hard for me to make the adjustment into the workplace. I wasn't use to being around a desk and in an office. I worked outside for most of my life and I did what I wanted to when I wanted to so it was somewhat difficult to get in to the whole corporate life.
Q: How did you get involved with radio broadcasting?
JC: Someone asked me to commentate on Boys' and Girls' champs in 2002 and I agreed. I guess I did good job so Alston Lewis of KLAS FM asked me to come on board. I absolutely love doing Scoreboard. I've been there for three years and I've learnt a lot. Thanks to Maurice Foster I know more about cricket and I've learnt more about other sports including tennis, which my son plays.
Q: Apart from not winning a gold medal at a major championship do you have any regrets during your career?
JC: The only regret I have is that I didn't run up to the 2000 Olympics. I think there was still a lot for me to accomplish when I left the track (in 1998). When I was forced to retire because of the injury I was really mad. I had a severe injury to my hamstring, which prevented me from running under 11 seconds consistently. I could not recover after a year of treatment and I was really upset because I'm a fighter and I knew that if I had gone to the 2000 Olympics I could have medalled.
Q: Jamaica has some of the top female sprinters in the world. Which do you think are on the verge of greatness?
JC: Veronica Campbell is on the verge of doing something as great as Merlene Ottey. There aren't many women running under 22 seconds in the 200 metres in the world and I think Veronica will be the next Jamaican to do that. She is still very young and she's running very fast and at her age she is doing incredibly well.
Q: If you were to suit up now and resume training what mark do you think you could reach?
JC: I think I could run 11:00 flat.
Q: How do you think the drug policies being enforced by the World Anti-Doping Agency will change the face of track and field?
JC: They already have. Look at the last Olympics, we've never seen so many Jamaicans at the podium at one Olympic Games. We've never seen so many Jamaicans making it to the finals and I think we are playing on a fairer playing field now ... and I wish to God when I was running we had that because you would have heard more about Juliet Cuthbert. There were a lot people cheating in the sport and I resented them. I couldn't prove it but I could just look at them and tell. But the advancement in detecting cheaters has helped the sport. There has been an emergence of people from different countries winning Olympic medals and not just the US dominating everything.
Q: Is personal training the new 'track and field' of your life?
JC: It has always been something I wanted to do - It was a dream of mine whenever I moved back to Jamaica. After retiring I coached a high school in the US and I worked briefly at a gym. I love the concept of one-on-one training and getting results.
Q: You coached yourself at one point during your career, are you as tough on your clients as you were on yourself?
JC: My clients would probably say I am tough and I was tough on myself. But I'm also sensitive to aches and pains. I know and understand the body pretty well so I know what each person can manage.
LeVaughn Flynn
