Fighting back

Kenny Bednarek uses his love of martial arts to help his sprinting. However, as he tells Euan Crumley, it's improving his ability to relax that he hopes will ultimately allow him to kick down the door in his quest for a major title

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It has become a well-worn routine that signals when it's time to get to work. "I do the same thing every single time I go to the track," says Kenny Bednarek. "I put the headband on, do my bow and make sure to get my mind right.

Those rituals herald the arrival of "Kung Fu Kenny", not so much an alter ego as a state of mind for the two-time Olympic 200m silver medallist - a man who has been doing his level best to make a serious dent in the sprinting world but perhaps hasn't been lauded in quite the same way as some of his peers.

Bednarek, by his own admission, is: "Not really an attention grabber or seeker, so I kind of fly under the radar." On one hand, the American is happy with that state of affairs, to do his own thing and just get on with the task at hand but, on the other, he is also still searching for greater professional contentment.

"I feel like, when I step on the track, people know who I am and they know what I'm going to do, so that respect is there, but I still do have a chip on my shoulder," says the 2022 World Championships 200m silver medallist.