[Archive 2011-07-07] Jamaican Olympian and coach Pablo McNeil dies aged 71

Historical archive — originally published 2011-07-07. This report records what was known on that date. It is not current news; subsequent events may have changed the situation. Wikinews closed in May 2026.

Jamaican Olympic athlete and coach Pablo McNeil has died at the age of 71. The cause of death was a long illness he suffered since a stroke in December 2007.

A sprinter since childhood, McNeil competed at two Olympic Games. In the 1964 Tokyo Games he reached the semi-final of the 100 meters, finishing sixth. He also appeared in the 100 meters at the 1968 Games in Mexico City, but failed to make it past the first round. He was part of the relay team that won a silver medal at the 1966 Commonwealth Games in Kingston, Jamaica.

After a career of competing in athletics, McNeil turned his attention to coaching. He became the sprint coach at the William Knibb High School where he met Usain Bolt. He convinced Bolt to make the switch from cricket to track and trained him up until the age of 16, when Bolt joined the Jamaica Amateur Athletic Association-administered High Performance Training Centre in Kingston.

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Text adapted from Jamaican Olympian and coach Pablo McNeil dies aged 71 by Wikinews contributors under CC BY 2.5. Paragraphs have been selected and abridged, and formatting adjusted. Contributor history.