Nicolas Macrozonaris has moved into the forefront in Canadian sprinting and has shown signs he can be a power at the international level. Certainly Macrozonaris, with his Greek heritage, is expected to be a crowd favorite in Athens.
Last season he posted his personal best time of 10.03 seconds at the Mexico Grand Prix. In that race he beat world record holder Tim Montgomery for the gold medal. But at the world championships in Paris he was eliminated in the semifinals. So far this year he has not produced any great performances in international competitions.
Macrozonaris will also be a crucial member of the 4X100 relay team. Earlier this year he was inserted as the opening runner at the Modesto Relays. "Having a guy like Nicolas at the start provides a fast start and that gives the other guys a real boost," said Glenroy Gilbert, head coach of the relay team. At the worlds last year, Macrozonaris withdrew from the relay because he wasn't pleased with his assignement
Macrozonaris was inspired to become a sprinter after watching Donovan Bailey win the gold medal at the 1996 Olympics.
