University of Georgia Athletics
Quick Chat: Cejhae Green
May 10, 2018 | Track & Field, The Frierson Files
By John Frierson
Staff Writer
Georgia sprinter Cejhae Green is from St. John's, the capital city of Antigua and Barbuda, and home still means a great deal to him. He was one of nine Olympians from the island nation in the Caribbean to compete in Rio in 2016, and he advanced to the semifinals of the 100 meters.
This weekend, Green and the sixth-ranked Georgia men's and women's track and field teams are at the University of Tennessee for the SEC Championships. On Tuesday, Green sat down for a Quick Chat about home, Rio, what goes through a sprinter's mind and much more. We even talk dancing for a bit.
Here's some of what he had to say:Â
Frierson: Take me through a race, starting with when you're in the blocks — what's going through your mind at that point? Do you have a checklist that you go through?
Green: To be honest, most of my checklist is before I get into the blocks. The checklist for me is just reiterating what Coach [Ken Harnden] has been saying for weeks: be patient, don't jump the gun, trust what we've been doing.
By the time I get into the blocks, my mind is clear. At that point I just trust that whatever we've been doing is going to fall into place, which normally happens.
Frierson: What about once the race begins, are you thinking at all about anything?
Green: It sounds crazy, but once the race begins you literally forget the world. You don't hear nothing, you don't see nothing, and half the time you don't remember the race itself until you cross the finish line.
A lot of folks ask me if I hear people cheering for me. I'm like, I believe y'all have been cheering, but I just don't hear it. You're in a different zone; you're so dialed in on what you're doing, you don't even notice the person next to you.
Frierson: Tell me about home, when I say St. John's, what comes to mind?
Green: When you say St. John's I think of Carnival, I think of colors, festivities. St. John's is a small city, but it's so close-knit. You know so many people; it's pretty, it's almost historical when you think of it. Whenever I hear of St. John's I think of necklaces and being around persons that I grew up with, being able to walk through the city and be like, "Hey, Cejhae, how you been doing? I haven't seen you in so long."
Frierson: Do you plan on going back and living there at some point?
Green: I have to go home, that's where I'm from. I do love home and I see myself living at home; I love home. A lot of persons will say they prefer to live somewhere else, but all of my family is there. I do have some relatives that live in Orlando and stuff like that, but eventually I see myself going home.
Immediately, I see myself training with Coach Ken for a little bit longer. As long as I can stretch out my career, I'll be where Coach Ken is.
Frierson: Where would you go if you were given all the time and money you needed to travel anywhere in the world?
Green: That's a tough, tough one. I would say Dubai. I'd definitely going to Dubai, and I'm taking Warren Fraser. He trains with us, he's from the Bahamas, and we've been so close together, even before I transferred here [from Florida State]. ... And if I wasn't taking him, I'd take Kendal Williams.
Frierson: How often do you think back to Rio and your Olympic experience?
Green: A lot. Any time anybody asks be about Rio, I still say it's one of the most ... how to put it — I always get at a loss for words. It's one of the best times I ever had, in terms of competition-wise, Games-wise and just overall experience.
Even now, before big races, a lot of times I'll be like, "Cejhae, you made it to the semifinals of the Olympics, so you've got nothing to worry about. You've done so much already, just go out there and compete." So I think back a lot to Rio.
Frierson: If you could be really, really good at any other sport for a day, just to experience it, what sport would it be?
Green: I would say football, American football. I used to play soccer before, and I was tempted to play soccer, but I kind of have the experience of what it feels like to play soccer.
Frierson: I would imagine you were probably a pretty good forward, striker.
Green: I was a striker, so I kind of have a feel for what playing that is like. But since I've never played American football, I always wondered what it feels like to be down there, even in the college football setting.
Frierson: You could get open as a receiver, I have no doubts about that. I don't know if you can catch, but you can for sure get out in front of everybody with your speed. ... Had you ever been to an American football game before college?
Green: I'd seen it, I knew what it was, but I'd never paid much attention to it. It was never in our jurisdiction, to be honest. For us it was either cricket, track or soccer. When I was growing up it was mostly cricket, but now it's mostly soccer. When I came up here and saw American football I was like, this is kind of fun.
Frierson: I was very vaguely aware of cricket until a few years ago. Now you can pick up that all-cricket channel here.
Green: Yeah, Willow Sports.
Frierson: I would watch and try to figure out what I'm looking at exactly.
Green: That's probably how I feel about baseball. I still haven't grasped it yet; I'm trying, but I still haven't grasped it.
Frierson: What's the most creative thing you do, or wish you could do?
Green: I wish I could play the drums. That might not sound super creative, but I just like the way drummers, they have this weird rhythm that I like. The most creative thing I can do, I used to be able to draw pretty well. I haven't done it in a while so I'm not too sure.
We made kites a lot. Do you call them kites up here?
Frierson: We do — some paper in a frame, on a string.
Green: We used to make them from scratch. ... As a matter of fact, that's probably the most creative thing I can do, for real (laughs). I was really, really good at it. My little brother used to ask me a lot, "When are you going to make a kite for me?"
I used to take it for granted until you just asked me that question. That took me back down memory lane — haven't done that in a while (laughs).
Frierson: What's something your friends are all into that you don't get or understand?
Green: Where I'm from, we dance a lot. But our dances are a little different — a lot of American dances are almost like breakdances in a sense, you just stand up and dance with yourself. We're more interactive when we dance; that's one thing I didn't get for a long time.
It's like, we have a culture where we interact with persons when we dance; we get into a group and everybody dances together. Up here it's more of a show-type thing. That's one thing I didn't get for a while, a long time, but I'm starting to get it a little bit more. As a said, we're festival people and we like bringing together everybody and having fun as a group.
(This Q&A was lightly edited for length and clarity.)
John Frierson is the staff writer for the UGA Athletic Association and curator of the ITA Men's Tennis Hall of Fame. You can find his work at: GeorgiaDogs.com/frierson. He's also on Twitter: @FriersonFiles.
