- British sprinter Reece Prescod says he entered trials for the
Tokyo Olympics 18 pounds overweight. - He says he ate too much takeout food, snacked, and spent hours playing "Call of Duty."
- "I got absolutely whooshed," Prescott, who got to Tokyo via a discretionary pick, said.
The British Olympic sprinter Reece Prescod said he turned up to the trials for the Tokyo Olympics overweight after gorging on takeout and playing hours of "Call of Duty."
Prescod finished a disappointing fifth at the British trials last month, capping a turbulent year that saw him relocate to a US training base before returning just two months later.
The 25-year-old made it onto Team Great Britain for Tokyo only by virtue of a discretionary pick by the UK Athletics head coach Christian Malcolm.
"It was weird when I was running in the trials," Prescod told reporters in Japan, per The Guardian. "I was well overweight and I got absolutely whooshed, absolutely battered."
The Brit said he weighed 191 pounds at the trials - 18 pounds more than his usual race weight.
"I don't know if it was American food or if I love Deliveroo too much," added the European silver medalist. Deliveroo is a popular British delivery service similar to DoorDash.
"Where I live by Canary Wharf you've got Joe & the Juice in the morning, Pret, then you come back for lunch time, there's a Nando's, there's GBK" - Gourmet Burger Kitchen.
"One of my close friends as well and her family have an amazing Caribbean restaurant, so I could just do that," he continued.
"Then I jump on 'Call of Duty' with the boys, and then we're eating, a little snack break, and instead of having a fruit salad, I might order from Cake and Custard Factory.
"Before you know it, it's a jam tart, a pink icing cake with some custard, and then I've ordered two and an Appletiser and then I go to bed. You do that for a week and the weight just ends up going on."
Prescod, who ran a career-best wind-assisted 9.88 seconds in the 100-meter dash in 2018, says he has since ditched the unhealthy diet and video game sessions in pursuit of a medal in Tokyo.
"This holding camp I need to stick to the fruit salads and the water, chicken, and ease up a little bit," he said. "There will be no Cake and Custard Factory and all that stuff. It's not good."
But he added: "If I win a medal or do well, you will see me at the dessert bar, definitely."