'I was dreading retirement'- Jamaican icon opens up on his unexpected exit from athletics

Asafa Powell opens up on his unexpected exit from athletics

'I was dreading retirement'- Jamaican icon opens up on his unexpected exit from athletics

Abigael Wafula 20:23 - 30.03.2025

The two-time world champion admitted that he never wanted to retire from athletics, but injuries and past decisions forced him to end his career earlier than he had hoped.

Despite having spent most of his years as a track and field athlete and achieved great milestones, Asafa Powell has insisted that he never wanted to retire from the sport.

Asafa Powell announced his retirement on November 23, 2022, his 40th birthday, but he later revealed that it was not a decision he made willingly.

He explained that there were several decisions he made during his prime, including skipping important meets, that forced him to retire early because of the injury struggles he had.

Given a chance to go back, Asafa Powell revealed that he would have changed his approach to many things and most importantly, taken his career seriously to avoid the injuries that slowed him down.

“Injuries take away a lot and I always say that if I could go back and change anything, I would have changed a lot of the decisions that I made,” Asafa Powell said in a past interview on the Meet the Mitchells podcast.

“There are decisions that I overlooked that could have cost me a lot. Injuries are our worst enemy, that’s the only thing that can stop us. that has played a major role in my career but I can never be ungrateful.”

He added that many athletes usually shoot into the limelight having bright futures but injuries slow them down and their careers only last one to two years.

The two-time world champion is grateful to have been fortunate enough to compete up to his early thirties and still be a threat to youngsters.

“I would say I was dreading retirement because it was the only thing I knew and it was my job,” Asafa Powell revealed.

“You don’t even know when the day will come because a lot of athletes come out with a bright talent and bright future but their careers last two years and then they get injuries and don’t come back. Injuries cut short the careers of so many athletes but I was fortunate enough for almost 20 years.”

Asafa Powell undeniably remains one of the greatest sprinters to have ever existed and if he handled his career with caution, he could have silenced the likes of Usain Bolt and Justin Gatlin.

The greats have in previous interviews opened up about how Asafa Powell was a threat to their dominance.

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