AS HE prepares to come home for the World Athletics Relays, a flood of happy memories wash over 28-year-old Steven Gardiner.

The last time the event was here, his mixed 4x400m relay team won first prize.

Steven can already feel the joy of fellow Bahamians who will pack the stands in May, as well as the love of his extended family and his four-year-old Doberman Pincher named Blue.

“I’m everybody’s favourite uncle, brother, and cousin,” he says with a smile. “Everyone else is living through me right now. My brother used to run, but he got sidetracked. Now he’s so proud. When I win, he wins.”

Despite his young age and a late start in track and field, Steven has become one of the most accomplished Bahamian athletes of all time.

He won the country its first individual men’s Olympic medal on track in Tokyo back in 2021, plus a bronze medal at the 2016 Rio Olympics in the 4 x 400m relay.

The 43.85 seconds that he ran in Tokyo ranked him joint world leader for the men’s 400m sprint.

Golden Track Record

Steven has set several records, including the world indoor 300m at 31.56 seconds in January 2022. He is the Bahamian national record holder for the 200m and 400m, as well as the 4x400m relay.

His winning time of 43.48 seconds in the 400m at the October 2019 World Championships in Doha is the Bahamian record and rendered him the sixth-fastest man in the history of the event. His feat was particularly meaningful and unexpected given the turmoil just one month prior, when Category 5 Hurricane Dorian made a direct hit to his family home on Abaco. Thoughts of the devastation and loss of life naturally affected Steven at the time, but he displayed remarkable emotional control, telling reporters: “It was going through my head before the race but not during it as I was focused only on winning the title and bringing some joy to the people.”

His favourite competition so far was the Tokyo Summer Olympic Games. “Tokyo was unforgettable. I did exactly what I wanted. Winning the gold felt amazing!”

But chasing the sun hasn’t been easy. He’s had to overcome many challenges to attain peak performance, like learning how to master his 6-foot-five frame.

“I remember when I first started running, it was tough. The biggest thing for me is sleep. I can fall asleep anywhere – even in a crowd,” he said. “When you train this hard, injuries occur. I want to run fast when it matters. It can be intense. But I have matured, and my body has matured. I trust Gary Evans and his program.”

Raised in Paradise

Steven was born on the outskirts of Marsh Harbour, the sleepy heart of Abaco with about 6,000 inhabitants. He’s called the island home for most of his life and sticks close to his roots despite his global success.

Today he lives in Florida, where he trains under American coach Gary Evans, but he returns to Abaco to visit his family about three times per year.

Asked what he misses most about The Bahamas, Steven can’t pinpoint only one thing: “Bahamian food – conch or something... I ask my mom to bring her cooking to Florida,” he says. “Also, the weather. It’s colder in Florida and the beaches are much better in the Bahamas.”

Steven was naturally athletic as a child, but he didn’t start racing until age 17 – much later than average for his peer group. “For me, it was hard. I didn’t understand the sport. My body was unprepared. Most of my peers have been racing since age six. There was so much I had to catch up on,” he said.

However, he made significant progress during his early 20s, maturing both mentally and physically. “I started to think to myself – ‘I can be great at this,’” he said.

As he grew faster and found his rhythm, Steven relied on guidance from high-caliber Bahamian athletes, like fellow sprinter Shanuae MillerUibo and “Golden Girl” Eldece Clark.

Now that he’s a top sports role model himself, his advice to young, up-and-coming Bahamian athletes chasing their dreams is to “Never give up no matter what people say. People will try to discourage you. Once you get there, the same people who tried to discourage you will be at your feet. It’s up to you the life that you choose and not anybody else.”

Today, Steven looks ahead to the World Relays as another chance to make his country proud. The two-time Olympic medalist is determined to qualify for the Olympics at the event this May and “bring another gold medal home for the country,” he said. “It’s very special to have the World Relays at home, I’m training as much as I can to show my Bahamian pride so everyone can celebrate with joy.”