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| Full Name: |
Timothy
Benjamin |
| Sex: |
Male |
| Born: |
2
May 1982 (Cardiff) |
| Height: |
1.83m |
| Weight: |
76kg |
| Event: |
400m |
| Coach: |
Tony
Lester |
| Club: |
Belgrave
Harriers |
| University: |
Brunel |
Personal Bests:
| Outdoors |
| 100m (w) |
10.36 |
2 Jun 2001 |
Bangor, GBR |
| 100m |
10.48 |
16
Sep 2000 |
Bath, GBR |
| 200m (w) |
20.60 |
7
Aug 1999 |
Riga, LAT |
| 200m |
20.67 |
17
Jun 2001 |
Cardiff, GBR |
| 300m |
32.61 |
27
Aug 2002 |
Gothenburg, SWE |
| 400m |
44.56 |
9 Sep 2005 |
Monaco, MON |
| TJ |
11.94 |
6 Jul 1996 |
Swansea, GBR |
| LJ |
6.76 |
1999 |
|
| Indoors |
| 60m |
6.75 |
27 Jan 2001 |
Birmingham, GBR |
| 200m |
20.78 |
24 Feb 2001 |
Birmingham, GBR |
| 300m |
38.04 |
28 Jan 1996 |
Birmingham, GBR |
| 400m |
47.60 |
3 Feb 2002 |
Cardiff, GBR |
1997
Tim won his first national
title in 1997 with the U17 indoor 200m while still only 14. That summer he
improved his 200m best from 23.21 to 21.74, and progressed to the top world
rankings for his age.
1999
In 1999, Tim became the
inaugural World Youth champion at 200m, when from a personal best of 21.19 he
ran 20.98 in his semi-final and 20.72 in the final at Bydgoszcz. He ran yet
faster at the European Juniors in Riga with a wind-aided 20.60 for the silver
medal, to which he added relay gold.
2000
Indoors, Tim improved his
60m best from 6.93 to 6.75 and took the sprint double at the AAA Juniors in 6.83
and 21.06 for 200m (a Welsh junior record).
Outdoors, Tim took silver in
the Welsh 100m and 200m and fifth in the AAA senior 200m. He went on to take
silver at 100m and gold at 200m at the AAA Juniors.
He matched his 200m season's
best of 20.76 in the semi-final of the World Junior Championships and took
bronze in the final. He ran the third leg on the British team that took gold at
4x100m in a European Junior record time of 39.05.
2001
Tim team captained the
British junior men's team in 2001.
Indoors at 60m he matched
his best of 6.75 and took silver at the AAA Juniors. He set British junior 200m
records of 20.86 and 20.78 when he won the AAA Junior title. He went on to take
bronze in the AAA 200m.
Outdoors at 200m, Tim was
6th in the AAAs and took silver in the Welsh Championships in a PB of 20.67, and
AAA U20s in 20.6w.
Tim ran a 46.25 400m relay
leg indoors at Glasgow and 46.45 at Loughborough in July.
Tim took double gold at the
European Juniors - first at 400m in a PB of 46.43, and then in the 4x100m relay,
adding silver at 4x400m.
At the World Championships
in Edmonton, Tim ran the third leg for the British 4x400m team (45.46 leg in the
heat and 45.85 in the final).
Further improvement came
when he won in Edinburgh in 46.10, the top mark of the year by a European
junior.
2002
Tim took silver in the AAA
indoor 400m in 2002.
Outdoors, he won the Welsh
200m and excelled at the Commonwealth Trials to cross the line third in 45.65,
only to be disqualified for running out of his lane.
He ran an excellent
second leg (45.2) to help Britain to victory in the European Cup 4x400m and then
won his first senior AAA title, producing a powerful finish to win in
45.73.
At the Commonwealth Games in
Manchester, Tim ran 45.89 for seventh in his semi-final. He also ran the opening
leg in 45.8 for Wales's silver medal-winning 4x400m team.
Tim went on to make the
final at the European Championships, but was unable to run due to a hamstring
injury. He returned to win in Barcelona and ran 45.80 for 7th at the World Cup.
2003
Tim took a bronze medal with
the British 4x400m team at the 2003 World Indoors.
Outdoors, he ran the second
leg at the European Cup and won in Prague in 45.86.
At the European Under-23s he
shaded his personal best with 45.71 in his heat before taking the silver medal
in 45.86.
He improved to 45.63 in
London, but was just short of the World Championships 'A' standard of 45.55.
However, two days after the qualifying period ended he ran a splendid 45.27 for
second in the Under-23 race at Zürich. He ran the first leg in the heats for
the British 4x400m team at the Worlds but was not fit for the final.
He had keyhole surgery to
remove a tendon in his knee in December 2003.
2004
Tim was helped by having
Roger Black as a mentor as he established himself as Britain's top 400m runner
in 2004.
He won the European Cup in
45.37 and the AAA title in 45.58, before and setting a personal best of 45.04
for third at the London Grand Prix at Crystal Palace.
Tim made the Olympic
semi-final at 400m.
2005
|
Benjamin's
spinal horror
April 27,
2005
TIM BENJAMIN,
Great Britain's 400m No.1, remains optimistic he can return to his best this
summer despite spending more than week in hospital last month suffering a
dural leak from his spine, writes Steve Landells.
Benjamin, the
AAA 400m champion, was taken to hospital after complaining of sickness and
blinding headaches following a routine medical injection administered by a
UK Athletics doctor to solve a bad back and groin pain.
However,
after the injection Benjamin, 22, suffered a dural leak from his spine,
which occurs when a watertight sack of tissue covering the spinal cord and
the spinal nerves is torn.
Speaking at
the Thames Valley Athletics Centre more than a month after the horrific
incident the young Welshman is happy to talk about the painful episode of
his life which followed.
He explained:
"I felt a bit of a twinge after the injection and
within about half-an-hour I had a really bad headache, like a migraine, I
was all blurry and being sick. When I lay flat I was virtually symptom-free
but when I stood up the pressure in my body changed and caused headaches and
dizziness."
Two days
after the injection Benjamin was diagnosed at Bisham Abbey as having
suffered a dural leak by an English Institute of Sport doctor and was told
to bed rest.
However, when
he returned home his condition did not improve.
"I
went home but I couldn't even get up to walk the dog," he added.
"I know it sounds daft but I couldn't even wash
properly, I was eating crap, snacking out on Jaffa cakes. As soon as I stood
up it was unbearable."
His father, a
Professor of Anatomy, drove from South Wales to be with his son in his home
near Eton and the former European junior 400m champion was later taken into
hospital where an injection of Benjamin's own blood was carried out in an
attempt to plug the leak. Typically, this takes ten days to heal but in some
cases can take up to seven years.
"I
was told by doctors there was an 80 per cent chance of it working," he
added. "I was told to lie down for another couple
of days and I felt about 50 per cent better when they released me from
hospital."
However,
within half-an-hour he felt the symptoms returning and the following day
returned to hospital.
He recalled: "I
was taken from hospital and I soon had to lie down in the back of the car. I
went back into hospital and this is when I felt at my worst. I just wondered
when it was going to end. The headaches got worse and I couldn't eat or
drink anything."
One national
newspaper even reported he was suffering from a stroke, news he greeted with
a shrug of the shoulders.
"I
had all these national newspaper guys trying to contact me. I thought why do
they want to contact me I'm not
Kelly
Holmes?"
he said. "I don't know why they thought I was
suffering from a stroke?"
Nonetheless,
despite the incorrect newspaper report of Benjamin's health, the leak had
still not been plugged and he was forced to lie horizontal to enable the
blood to stick and he was put on
a drip. It was only three days later he was allowed to sit upright and
slowly he returned to full health.
Within a week
of his hospital release he started jogging, and despite picking up a
strained calf he is now on the road to full fitness.
So can
Benjamin, who missed the indoor season after tearing a muscle in his knee,
return to the kind of form this summer which took him to a 400m personal
best of 45.04 last year?
"In
December 2003 I had keyhole surgery to remove a tendon in my knee and I only
returned to training in late February. I then tore a hamstring at the
beginning of April and I thought my Olympic dream was over. But by June 5 I
had run 45.4 for the 400m. I have to try and take hope from last year, stay
confident for the summer and hopefully I'll be at the World Championships.
If the worst comes to the worst I've got the Commonwealths shortly
after."
Benjamin,
however, was not prepared to comment on the UKA doctor who administered the
injection. |
|
With
relegation already a certainty, the 4 x 400m team had a point to prove
on behalf of the Great Britain team, although as Tim Benjamin
explained after – “I
had a glance at the scoreboard before the race, but then I didn’t
have my glasses on so it didn’t tell me much.”
Either
way, the foursome of Robert Tobin, Graham Hedman, Malachi Davis and
Benjamin on the final leg, ran the race as if world medals depended on
it, and the talented group who are seeing a mini-resurgence in their
event clocked the fastest winning time in the European cup for eight
years.
Not
since the golden boys of 1997 – (Roger Black, Iwan Thomas, Jamie
Baulch and Mark Richardson) recorded their sub three of 2.59.46, had a
squad looked as promising, and as if on their own private odyssey for
“Sub-3” rings, got off to a swift start with Robert Tobin. His
handover to Graham Hedman and the unwinding of the stagger told the GB
support what they wanted to know as the lead of 15 metres stretched
into the back straight.
With
the Polish team in hot pursuit, the gap narrowed to 10m by handover to
Malachi Davis, and when Tim Benjamin took over for the anchor leg, 2
metres was all that stood between himself and the chasing Poles.
Also
on that final leg was Frenchman Marc Raquil, with a traditional home
straight surge that could have seriously challenged for honours. Yet
the French were found wanting – as one star does not a relay team
make. They were adrift of the main action and with no more hope of
catching Benjamin than the Polish side had.
As
he explained after, it wasn’t so much the position as he felt that
no one would be able to catch him, but he had more than half an eye on
the clock as he ran through the line as earnestly as he would if an
opponent had been on his shoulder:
“I
thought it was there – I saw the clock when it was on 2.58 but it
wasn’t to be, but it’s definitely in there with these guys, if we
can keep this running order.”
“My
hamstring was a bit tight coming round the top bend and I couldn’t
kick how I wanted to, so I had to wind it up into the home straight.
And
next year in the 1st league?
“We’ll
just have to do it again and get us back up here won’t we.” |
| London
Grand Prix
Tim Benjamin
delivered the shock of the night as he defeated Olympic champion
Jeremy Wariner in the 400m.
The Welshman
poured on the pace over the final 20m to dip under 45 seconds for the
first time in his career in 44.75 seconds.
"I'm really
pleased to break through into world class,"
Benjamin told BBC Sport.
"Everybody's
been bugging me to break 45 and I just wanted to show I could do
it."
|
| Buoyant
Benjamin eyes World glory
Tim Benjamin
has his sights firmly set on a World Championship medal after his 400m
success at the London Grand Prix.
The Welshman, who
was crowned World Youth champion six years ago, broke 45 seconds for
the first time as he upset Olympic gold medallist Jeremy Wariner.
Benjamin said: "Can
I do well in the World Championships? Of course I can. I want to go
and win a medal now.
"My coach
says I can run 44.5 and now I believe it. I'm world class and I've got
to get used to it."
|
| Golden
League, Zurich
Jeremy Wariner,
who also added the world title to his Olympic crown, was also in
dominant form in the men's 400m.
The American
pulled clear of Chris Brown at the 300m-mark to win in 44.67 ahead of
Canada's fast-finishing Tyler Christopher and Brown.
Britain's Tim
Benjamin struggled in the damp conditions and finished in seventh
place, clocking 45.45.
"I'm so tired
I got to 150 metres remaining, where I usually kick, but I had
absolutely nothing,"
the Welshman said. |
| Norwich
Union British Grand Prix, Sheffield
A tired Tim
Benjamin came through for second behind Commonwealth champion Michael
Blackwood in the men's 400m.
Benjamin, who ran
in Zurich on Friday night, clocked 45.49secs, three-tenths of a second
behind Blackwood and just clear of Alleyne Francique in third.
|
|
IAAF
Golden League meeting, Brussels
Tim
Benjamin is aiming to increase his points tally in Friday's Brussels
Golden League meeting to ensure he can claim a place at next month's
World Athletics final in Monaco.
The
Welshman is convinced he is fully recovered from the exertions of the
World Athletics Championships in Helsinki and will be in shape to do
himself justice after a jaded performance in Zurich a week ago where
he finished seventh after a heavy spell of competition.
He
said: "I was
shattered after Helsinki and it didn't help going straight from there
to Zurich and then on to Sheffield (where he was second behind Michael
Blackwood last Sunday in the Norwich Union British Grand Prix). Now I
have had a few days rest and I am really hungry again."
Benjamin,
who ran under the 45-second barrier for the first time en-route to
defeating Wariner at Crystal Palace, continued: "That's
what I want to do here - go under 45seconds again. It's also a case of
staying afloat."
Benjamin
sets new best in Brussels
Tim
Benjamin posted a personal best time when he finished runner-up in the
400 metres at the IAAF Golden League meeting in Brussels on Friday
night.
The
23-year-old Welshman struck one hundredth of a second from his
previous best of 44.75 seconds, set last month when he beat Olympic
and world champion Jeremy Wariner at Crystal Palace.
Benjamin,
who pushed Brandon Simpson to a personal best mark of 44.70secs, ran a
powerful final bend and almost caught the Jamaican who finished one
place behind him in sixth at the recent World Championships in
Helsinki.
His
performance, and the points he earned, will almost certainly guarantee
him a place in the World Athletics final which takes place in Monaco
on 9-10 September. |
|
