Empson Othman Desai Williams (June 12, 1959 – April 10, 2022) was a Canadian
sprinter, who won an
Olympic
Olympic or Olympics may refer to
Sports
Competitions
* Olympic Games, international multi-sport event held since 1896
** Summer Olympic Games
** Winter Olympic Games
* Ancient Olympic Games, ancient multi-sport event held in Olympia, Greece b ...
bronze medal in
4 x 100 metres relay in
Los Angeles 1984. He was born in
Basseterre
Basseterre (; Saint Kitts Creole: ''Basterre'') is the capital and largest city of Saint Kitts and Nevis with an estimated population of 14,000 in 2018. Geographically, the Basseterre port is located at , on the south western coast of Saint Kit ...
,
St. Kitts and Nevis.
Competing at the first two
World Championships, where he reached the semi-final (1983 and 1987), he set his personal best
200 metres
The 200 metres, or 200-meter dash, is a sprint running event. On an outdoor 400 metre racetrack, the race begins on the curve and ends on the home straight, so a combination of techniques is needed to successfully run the race. A slightl ...
time with 20.29 s in 1983 and his
100 metres
The 100 metres, or 100-meter dash, is a sprint race in track and field competitions. The shortest common outdoor running distance, the dash is one of the most popular and prestigious events in the sport of athletics. It has been conteste ...
personal best time of 10.11 s from a 6th-place finish at the
1988 Olympic Games
1988 Olympics refers to both:
*The 1988 Winter Olympics, which were held in Calgary, Alberta, Canada
*The 1988 Summer Olympics
The 1988 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XXIV Olympiad () and commonly known as Seoul ...
in
Seoul
Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) as stated iArticle 103 of ...
,
South Korea
South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korean Peninsula and sharing a land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed by the Yellow Sea, while its eas ...
.
Williams trained with the Scarborough Optimists Track Club, which was affiliated with the
Ben Johnson Ben, Benjamin or Benny Johnson may refer to:
In sports Association football
* Ben Johnson (footballer, born 2000), English footballer
* Ben Johnson (soccer) (born 1977), American soccer player
Other codes of football
*Ben Johnson (Australian foot ...
scandal. Club coach
Charlie Francis
Charles Merrick Francis (October 13, 1948 – May 12, 2010) was a Canadian Olympic sprinter and sprint coach most noteworthy for being the trainer of sprinter Ben Johnson, the first competitor to be stripped of an Olympic gold medal for using ban ...
, working with
Dr. Jamie Astaphan, had supplied performance-enhancing drugs to Johnson, Williams,
Tony Sharpe,
Angella Taylor,
Mark McKoy
Mark Anthony McKoy (born December 10, 1961) is a Canadian retired track and field athlete. He won the gold medal in the 110 metres hurdles at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics. He also won the 60 metres hurdles title at the 1993 IAAF World Indoor Cha ...
, and others.
Williams also worked as the speed coach for the
Toronto Argonauts
The Toronto Argonauts (officially the Toronto Argonaut Football Club and colloquially known as the Argos) are a professional Canadian football team competing in the East Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL), based in Toronto, Ontario ...
, training Olympic athletes
Tremaine Harris
Tremaine Harris (born February 10, 1992) is a Canadian track and field athlete who specializes in the sprint distances.
He is of Jamaican descent and is fluent in English and French.
His personal best for the 200 m (20.22 seconds) is the sixth fas ...
,
Phylicia George
Phylicia George (born November 16, 1987) is a Canadian Olympic track and field athlete and bobsledder.
Career Hurdles
George competed at the 2011 World Championships in Daegu, South Korea reaching the final in the 100m hurdles. She went on to ...
. and
Justyn Warner
Justyn Warner, (born June 28, 1987) is a Canadian track athlete specializing in the 100 metres. He is the former Canadian Junior record holder at that distance with a time of 10.26. He anchored the Canadian 4 × 100 m relay team to a third-place f ...
, among others.
Williams was fired as a coach by Athletics Canada in 2015. A probe found that Williams had violated the organization's
sexual harassment policy while a coach in 2010. In 2018, he was handed a lifetime ban by Athletics Canada.
Williams died of a heart attack on April 10, 2022 at the age of 62.
[https://www.cbc.ca/sports/olympics/summer/trackandfield/desai-williams-obit-1.6417244 ]
International competitions
See also
*
List of doping cases in athletics
A ''list'' is any set of items in a row. List or lists may also refer to:
People
* List (surname)
Organizations
* List College, an undergraduate division of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America
* SC Germania List, German rugby union ...
References
*
Further reading
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Desai
1959 births
2022 deaths
Canadian male sprinters
Olympic track and field athletes of Canada
Olympic bronze medalists for Canada
Medalists at the 1984 Summer Olympics
Athletes (track and field) at the 1984 Summer Olympics
Athletes (track and field) at the 1988 Summer Olympics
Pan American Games track and field athletes for Canada
Athletes (track and field) at the 1979 Pan American Games
Athletes (track and field) at the 1983 Pan American Games
Commonwealth Games gold medallists for Canada
Commonwealth Games silver medallists for Canada
Commonwealth Games medallists in athletics
Athletes (track and field) at the 1978 Commonwealth Games
Athletes (track and field) at the 1982 Commonwealth Games
Athletes (track and field) at the 1986 Commonwealth Games
World Athletics Championships athletes for Canada
Ben Johnson doping case
Canadian sportspeople in doping cases
Doping cases in athletics
Clemson Tigers men's track and field athletes
Black Canadian track and field athletes
Saint Kitts and Nevis emigrants to Canada
People from Basseterre
Olympic bronze medalists in athletics (track and field)
Universiade medalists in athletics (track and field)
Universiade silver medalists for Canada
Medalists at the 1983 Summer Universiade
Medallists at the 1982 Commonwealth Games
Medallists at the 1986 Commonwealth Games