BOYS and Girls Champs is still just over two weeks away but already the anticipation is reaching fever pitch as track and field fans look forward to yet another staging of the largest and best-organised meet of its kind anywhere in the world.

Champs will take on added significance this year, as it will be the 100th anniversary of the Boys Champs, and organisers, the Inter-Secondary Schools Sports Association (ISSA) and their sponsors have started a series of innovations that are certain to add to the glamour and glitz of

the event.

Covering Champs has, over the past decade or so, been one of the highlights of my year and given the early results from the western schools and athletes, Champs 2010 should be another good year.

Already the usual suspects, St Elizabeth Technical, Herbert Morrison and Munro College, have signalled their intentions, while a number of other schools such as William Knibb Memorial, Green Island High as well as relatively new names such as Petersfield High, Frome Technical, Irwin High and Godfrey Stewart High will be seeking to make their presence felt.

Unlike schools from central Jamaica in the girls’ section and Kingston among the boys, no western school is ready to threaten for championship honours, but as a combined force will help to decide who will win and who will not.

If the results of last weekend’s Carifta Trials at the National stadium were any indication, western athletes could have their best Champs in years.

There were 11 wins by western athletes, the most in many years and even more telling was the depth and quality of the performances.

Herbert Morrison placed three girls in the finals of the Under-20 sprints and it must have been a surprise to see two runners from Petersfield High in the top three of the Under-17 boys 800m finals.

Certainly no serious track fan would be surprised to see the likes of Peter-Gay Reid, Rochelle Farquharson and Opal James of STETHS winning their events, nor Herbert Morrison’s Antonique Campbell for that matter.

However, the likes of Odail Todd of Green Island, Alethia McLaughlin and Davian Dennis of STETHS winning their events must have opened eyes and caused a recalculation of points leading up to Champs.

There are, however, some concerns, primarily in the performance of the Munro College team since winning Western Champs in mid-February.

They came away from the Gibson Relays winless and under-performed at Carifta Trials. Shot putter Emmanuel Chinedu Afam Onyia threw two metres below his personal best achieved at Western Champs.

The Munro team was also beset with a spate of injuries however to top athletes such as Kaneil Harrison, Rolando Reid and Dexter McKenzie, but they should be back to full or near full fitness come Champs.