CHENNAI : Despite returning from Colorado Springs after injuring his Achilles heel tendon, Jinson Johnson is confident of returning to the track by January.The 1500m specialist was training there under Scott Simmons — he runs American Distance Project — and is now undergoing rehabilitation in Mumbai. Jinson is using an anti-gravity treadmill and doing underwater training at HN Reliance Foundation Hospital.
“I feel there has been some improvement. But there is a lot of difference between this and actually running on a track while wearing spikes. I am targeting January to get back on track. I have to because time is running out,” Jinson told this daily. Yet to qualify for Tokyo Olympics, the 28-year-old wants to return to competitions by March. Going by the month, it will either be at Federation Cup or Grand Prix. But he does not want to rush it. “It will take at least three months to get back to full fitness after I hit the track. Participating just for the sake of doing so is useless. I want to do well. So, I am going to take time.”
Speaking for the first time since returning from US, the Kozhikode athlete confirmed that he will not be going back after recovery. But unlike many reports doing rounds, Jinson never felt uncomfortable with the sub-zero temperatures in Colorado Springs, and that is not why he came back.
In fact, Jinson was the one who requested Athletics Federation of India to send him there, fully aware of the conditions. “I went there on my terms. I had given a proposal to the federation since I was part of TOP scheme. I went there because I wanted to know what it was like to train at the best facilities and with the coaches.
“It was like an experiment for me. It was going great until the injury. The climate was extreme. But then I went back after the Worlds. I could have chosen not to. After the injury, it is better to stay in hot conditions because our blood circulation becomes fast. In cold temperatures, it will be slow, and recovery will take time. That’s why I came back. Scott was very good to me. First few days, it was all about adapting to the high altitude. He had a proper plan in place for me, for training and competitions.”
The injury has been troubling Jinson for a while. According to him, he had pain in his leg even before reaching US. “If you had noticed, during my competitions in Europe and other places, I had always taped my leg. I was feeling weak.”But the Asian Games gold medallist kept pushing himself as he did not want to miss the World Championships. “First, my left tendon was paining. Then after I went to US, I got pain in my right tendon as well.”