July 1, 2016

Snead shines at Bahamas Olympic Trials

Nassau, Bahamas—Two-time All-American Carson-Newman sprinter Kevin Snead (Richmond, Va.) recently took his talents down south to compete in the 2016 Bahamas Olympic Trails on June 24 and 25 with hopes of qualifying for the United States Olympic Trails for the 2016 Rio Summer Olympics.

Nassau, Bahamas—Two-time All-American Carson-Newman sprinter Kevin Snead (Richmond, Va.) recently took his talents down south to compete in the 2016 Bahamas Olympic Trails on June 24 and 25 with hopes of qualifying for the United States Olympic Trails for the 2016 Rio Summer Olympics.

Snead took part in both the men's 100 and 200 meter runs where the rising collegiate senior tallied top-three finishes in both sprints.

Friday's events saw Snead finish third overall in the finals round of the men's 100 meter run after completing the trial with a 10.44 second time. The Richmond, Va. native also notched the second-fastest qualifying time for the 200 meter as well on the day, finishing second with a 21.03 second time.

Because Snead is not a native from the Bahamas, the sprinter was not allowed to compete in the group A's final round in the event. However on Saturday while competing in group B for the 200 meter run, Snead cruised to a first-place win of 21.06 seconds.

Though Snead came up short in reaching the goal of qualifying for the U.S. Olympic Trials, the experience was one to remember as the reigning United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Associations' Southeast Region Outdoor Track Athlete of the Year was able to spend a week in the Bahamas training and working with some of the top sprinters in the world.

The Bahamas Olympic team is coached by Shaun Miller, father of former C-N track star Shauntae Miller (Nassau, Bahamas). Miller's younger sister, Shaunae Miller, is a decorated Olympic sprinter as well and is currently ranked second in the world in the women's 400 meter run.

Carson-Newman track and field coach David Needs understood the opportunity that was in front of Snead when the four-time C-N record holder was invited to take part in the trials, as well as what it meant for the program in general.

"The Bahamas Olympic Trials were a collection of some of the best college and professional athletes in the world. It was great for Kevin to be able to watch these athletes prepare and work during a meet," Needs said. "It was an honor to have a C-N athlete down there to represent our school, our program and to show what we are all about."

Though Needs was not coaching Snead on the weekend, the head man was able to make the trip down to the Bahamas to root his sprinter on from the stands. While in attendance, Needs had the opportunity to catch up with Miller and witness different coaching styles from some of the best instructors in the world.

"Taking the trip down there was great because like Kevin, I was able to learn an awful lot from those who were around me," Needs said. "There were some great coaches from all around the world and from all divisions across the United States and seeing how they teach and relate to their players was fun to watch. Again, I was just thrilled that Carson-Newman was represented on the weekend in what was a large-scale meet for our sport."

Snead is now officially done competing on the year after taking part in competitions and training sessions for the greater part of the past seven months. The sprinter's first year in the Carson-Newman track and field program is historically the best of all-time in regards to sprinters after breaking numerous school records and taking home countless postseason awards.

After competing in the indoor season, Snead collected his first All-American honor from the USTFCCCA following a 10^th-place finish at the 2016 NCAA Indoor Track & Field Championships in the 60m dash. Snead was also named to the All-Southeast Region team for the indoor sector as well.

Snead followed up with the same honors for the outdoor season, this time while taking part in both the 100 and 200 meter runs. The junior was also named the Southeast Region Track Athlete of the Year and made it as high as the No. 1 ranked athlete in Division II for the 100 meter.

The two-time South Atlantic Conference and Southeast Region champion was the program's first ever automatic qualifier in school history for the 2016 NCAA Outdoor Championships in the men's 100 meter dash.

Following the 2016 Bahamas Olympic Trials, Snead will take some much needed rest before preparing for his senior year at Carson-Newman. Stay tuned into cneagles.com for all offseason coverage of the Carson-Newman track and field team.