Colin Jackson Exclusive: On winning an Olympic medal, future face of athletics, and potential stars at Paris 2024

Colin Jackson is among the finest hurdlers in history and had an impressive career that saw him win an Olympic silver medal at only 21 years old in the 110m hurdles in Seoul.

The Welshman broke the world record in the 110m hurdles in 1993 and held it for over a decade. He also held the world record for the 60m hurdles, a record that stood for 27 years until it was broken in 2021. Jackson won five medals at the World Championships, including two golds.

The Welshman recently visited Kolkata for the Tata Steel Kolkata 25K marathon, being the event's international ambassador. Sportskeeda got a chance to interview him about various topics in track and field and his career. Here's the Exclusive interview in full:

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Sportskeeda: Was there any athlete you looked up to while growing up, or was there someone who inspired you to become a hurdler?

Colin Jackson: "I was really fortunate that I was always a sports fan and I looked up into my sport of athletics, a decathlete from Great Britain called Daley Thompson. Daley was an Olympic champion, a world champion, Commonwealth champion, European champion, world record holder. And the fact that he looked like me and spoke like me was inspirational, and I realized that you can get at the top of your game with what you look like if you put the hard work in, which he obviously did. So, it was really fortunate for me that Daley Thompson was the champion he was, and yeah, he was from Great Britain. So it was great."

Sportskeeda: Feeling of winning an Olympic medal

Colin Jackson: "I think when you’re young, you watch the Olympic games on the television. You never think you’re going to be the winner right? You never think you’re going to be on the roster ever. So, you have this dream and you never believe it could really happen. So, when it happens to you, it’s just an amazing feeling because it’s literally like a dream come true, because you are dreaming, so it’s a great feeling."

Sportskeeda: Do you carry any regret or disappointment of missing out on an Olympic gold despite achieving so much throughout your career?

Colin Jackson: "I don’t really. I think there were reasons why I did not particularly win the Olympic gold medal in that particular time. No, I don’t really, I don’t think it makes me a worse person. Most probably, it makes me a better person not really in a bizarre way. So, yeah, I’ve got no real regrets in that sense."

Sportskeeda: The 2003 World Indoor Championships was your last tournament which was a year before the Athens Olympics. Did you ever consider having one last shot at an Olympic gold and overturning retirement?

Colin Jackson: "No. I mean, 2003, even that was too long for me, indoors, because I wanted to retire in 2002 and the only reason I kept going until 2003 was because it was going to be a home championship in Birmingham, and it seemed the right place to retire. So, if I am going to finish my whole athletic career, it should be with a home crowd watching. So, I decided to hang on till 2003 but 2004 was never going to happen."

Sportskeeda: Olympic medal or to hold a world record for over 10 years — In your eyes, what was most satisfying?

Colin Jackson: "Goodness gracious, I think because sometimes you set targets all the time, every single year. So, the world record is always a bonus more than anything else. So, to get the world like, ‘Oh it’s a wonderful cake, it’s great and I’ll just put a cherry on top.’ So, it’s always great to break a world record and be the best, undisputed on the planet.

"But also, I think winning medals is where it’s really at. It’s a long time but also when you have a world record for such a long time, it also tells you that you haven’t improved in 10 years right? And everybody wants to have some sense of improvement.

"I know that’s also the case (moderator says it also means no one can catch up to him in 10 years). As a world record holder, I remind people that it is my personal best. It just happens to be the best in the world but it’s my personal best. So, like everybody else, you want to improve your best performance, world record or holder or not."

Sportskeeda: How has sport shaped you as a person?

Colin Jackson: "Sports has shaped me in many ways. It has given me a real openness to the world because you see the world in a very different light, travelling around, gaining experience between cultures, societies, how they work, learning respect, having loyalty, and all these types of things. I wouldn’t say I would not have learned outside of the sport. I think the sport made me learn it a lot quicker. It was a catalyst to that, the sense of fulfilment. So, I think it’s shaped me a lot and I think in a good way."

Sportskeeda: You went undefeated 44 races in a row from 1993-1995. Which current athlete at present across any sport do you feel has had that kind of dominance?

Colin Jackson: "Yeah, potentially none, right? I mean, yeah I don't know really. You go in, you compete of course, and you try your best. I think everybody’s got to do what they gotta do. You set your goals, you try to achieve them. So, for me, that was the most important thing for me. So it would be hard for me to compare with other athletes in that sense because their goals may be different."

Sportskeeda: Noah Lyles recently said that track and field doesn't get enough recognition or have a face — What do you think about it? Do you see someone from track and field who could be the sport’s next face? Someone who could have the impact on track and field like Usain Bolt did?

Colin Jackson: "Usain had everything that is needed to be a sports star. He was successful on the field of play, he had style, he had charisma and he had Jamaica, which had a sense of coolness about it, so that’s what you want. Nobody in the world is threatened by Jamaica. I mean, you talk about Jamaica as an island, everyone says ‘Yes’. They would love to visit. So, for me, that’s what I love about it.

"To have that perfect storm anywhere else, maybe not. I don’t think we should look for another Usain Bolt because Usain Bolt is Usain Bolt. Whoever the next person is who has the ability, and they could come from Bengal. There’s nothing stopping it, you know. If that was the case, again it would be very similar to Usain if they came to be a top sports star.

"They have style, there’s some energy about where they’re from, there’s a story to be told. So, you need to get all those things together. So, it’s not just about being a great performer. You need to have everything else that goes alongside that as well."

Sportskeeda: You have spoken about sponsors before, Sha'Carri Richardson apparently signed a contract with NIKE which is said to be biggest in track history? Do you think the scenarios have changed now with sponsors and if so, do you think having a strong personality is important in getting a sponsorship?

Colin Jackson: Yeah I think it is because sponsorship in itself is not a one-way thing. You as an athlete, your sole responsibility is to perform, that’s your job. So make sure you work hard, make sure you train, and make sure you perform. If you’re lacking that, you have another one or two things that sponsors love to leverage, then great, that’s fantastic, that makes you even more attractive to sponsors.

"So, I think it’s really important for athletes to get their sponsorships. I also think they got to understand it’s a partnership, it’s not a one-way thing, because that partnership could lead to a long-term relationship, and everybody wants to have a long-term relationship. So, if you stay with your people who are surfacing you now in the world of sport, and you do good things, they will keep you. Why will they not? You are still a good ambassador for them."

Sportskeeda: Who do you think would be the star of track and field in Paris 2024?

Colin Jackson: That’s a great question. That’s a really good question. The competition is so, so hard. Seriously, I mean, I really couldn’t say. The current list of world champions we have at this moment and the Olympic champions we have at the moment are just breathtaking, but none of them could win their titles easily next year in 2024.

"So, I could not say to you right now. I genuinely could not. Even if we look at the USA team, I could name three people from the US team now but they wouldn’t actually get selected for their team because they got to do their qualification, which is like an Olympic games in itself. So, it’s really really difficult for me to say that right now."