‘Big Boy’ with big dreams
McDonald ready to do ‘whatever it takes’
Published:Thursday | September 18, 2025 | 12:12 AMGregory Bryce/Staff Reporter
REIGNING NATIONAL men’s 400-metre champion and national record holder Rusheen ‘Big Boy’ McDonald says he is ready to do whatever it takes in the final as he eyes a podium finish at the Tokyo World Athletics Championships.
McDonald is set to contest the men’s 400m final and will be the lone Jamaican in the field, as Bovel McPherson and Delano Kennedy both failed to advance past the semi-final round.
The national champion said he will be aiming to leave the Japan National Stadium with a medal.
“Tomorrow, I’m going for that final,” he said, while passing through the mixed zone after Tuesday’s semi-final.
However, it will not be an easy feat for McDonald as he is set to face one of the most competitive 400-metre fields in recent years.
The race will be headlined by Botswana’s Busang Kebinatshipi, who enters the race as the fastest qualifier when he set down a massive personal best and world-leading time of 43.61 seconds in the semi-finals.
Kebinatshipi will not be Botswana’s only competitor in the event, as they will also be represented by Lee Eppie and Bayapo Ndori.
The United States’s Jacory Patterson is also expected to be among the contenders, as he ran a personal-best 43.90 in the heats.
Patterson would barely sneak into the final, however, finishing fourth in 44.19 to advance from the semi-finals as a non-automatic qualifier.
South Africa’s Zakithi Nene is also expected to be make waves as he enters the final with a season’s and lifetime best of 43.76.
Of the field, McDonald will be one of five men to have gone below the 44-second barrier as he holds a personal best and national record of 43.93.
However, McDonald’s time had come 10 years ago, at the 2015 World Championships, a form he has never replicated.
He believes, however, he is in the form to do so once again, having gotten past the injury concerns which have plagued his career.
“I have been struggling with injuries for many years after my personal best 10 years ago,” he explained.
“This year, my coach and I have worked very smart and I am fit again. I am faster and will run whatever time it takes to win a medal for Jamaica.”
His performances throughout the rounds have shown signs of the improvement he speaks about.
He opened his campaign with a then-season’s best of 44.38 to finish behind Patterson’s 43.90.
His semi-final performance saw him lower his season’s best to 44.04, just a tenth of a second off his lifetime best.
The final is set for today at 8:10 a.m. Jamaica time.