"No real orthodox way of getting to the top" - Justin Gatlin compares NFL with track and field as he gets real on succeeding in the sport

Justin Gatlin compared track and field with other sports, stating how being successful on the track doesn't have an 'orthodox' way. He retired from his sport in 2022 but continues to be associated with the track.

Gatlin's 100m medals across the Olympic Games, World Championships, and Diamond League made him the most decorated track and field athlete in that discipline. He soared to the 100m victory at the 2004 Athens Games and continued his momentum in the following years, becoming a formidable rival to the world record holder Usain Bolt.

Three years into retirement, Gatlin hosts a podcast 'Ready Set Go', opining on players and events. Recently, he was welcomed on the 'Run Your Race' podcast to share his ideals, journey to the top, and rivalries in his career spanning almost two decades.

When the host asked about the recruitment process in track, the 5-time Olympic medalist shared that reaching greater heights doesn't have a conventional way.

"Track is no real Orthodox way of getting to the top it's just survival of the fittest like there's a draft. In the NBA there's a draft in NFL. So, as a kid you know like I got to work to get to the draft. Draft is gonna get me to this point. There ain't no drafting tracking field so you just run your ass off and you hope you get noticed."

He added:

"When I started like dropping better times and went to Nationals and got third at Nationals then I was getting letters for tracking field then that's when I started getting noticed."

Gatlin clocked a personal best time of 9.75s in the 100m making him the fifth-fastest of all time.

Justin Gatlin talked about the moment he realized his prowess on the track

Justin Gatlin at the 17th IAAF World Athletics Championships Doha 2019 - (Source: Getty)

Besides elite, Justin Gatlin competed on the college track for the University of Tennessee. He collected indoor and outdoor titles in the 100m and hurdles events at the NCAA level before forgoing his collegiate eligibility in 2002.

In the recent 'Run Your Race' podcast, Gatlin opened up about the incident that made him realize he was better on the track than an average athlete.

"My first real moment was probably winning state. You know, I literally won the 100 meters and came across the finish line. I went to go to the podium and then the whole crowd is like, I'm like, what are y'all doing? We about to start the race for the 110 hurdles, I also did hurdles. So literally they were lining up, so I had to jump off the podium, run over to the starting line, jump in the race; gun goes off. I win that race too. So then I come back to the podium so that's when I realized, like I was a little more gifted than the average athlete.”

Justin Gatlin vied for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics but a hamstring injury in the finals ended his chances to be the oldest man at 39 to win an Olympic medal in the 100m.