‘Produce the best’
MONTEGO BAY, St James – Western Primary Invitational (WPI), organisers of the JPS Western Primary Schools Athletics championships set for this Saturday at the Montego Bay Sports Complex in Catherine Hall, have been challenged to help produce athletes that will be able to move on from this level.
Donovan Craigie, who was representing new sponsors Guardian Life Insurance Company at last week’s press launch held at the International University of the Caribbean on East Street, Montego Bay, said “structures must be put in place for the proper guidance and training,” arguing that “the next world beater could come from this meet.”
Craigie bemoaned the fact that he did not hear too much about western based- athletes at the recent National Primary schools championships held in Kingston and urged the organisers to help to “expose talents we have here in the west.”
Wakefield Primary School will be seeking their third straight win in the five-year-old meet, after winning back to back titles over the last two years, and will lead the field of 20 schools.
Meet director Albert Ferguson told the media launch that while welcoming five new schools, several others were turned down, as they wanted to keep the total number of schools at 20.
With just under 900 athletes from the 20 schools, Ferguson explained, to go over that amount “we would have to extend the meet past the one day and right now we do not have the sponsorship to go the extra day.”
Additionally, he said, they had extended the range of the meet and have accepted schools from St Ann for the first time.
“St Ann is considered a part of the western section of the JPS and as such we decided to include them for the first time,” he noted.
Kathi Cooke, who represented JPS, the main sponsors, said her company had “no regrets” about their involvement in the one day event.
Meanwhile, the athletes will compete in four Classes in a variety of events.
Classes 1 and 2 athletes will do the 100m, 200m, 400m, 800m Open, long jump and the 4x100m and 4x400m relays; those in Class 3 will do the 100m, 200m, cricket ball throw and 4x200m, while the Class 4 athletes will do the 80m, 150m, cricket ball throw and the 4x100m relays.
Schools participating in the JPS Western Primary championships are:
Anchovy Primary, Barracks Road Primary, Bounty Hall Primary, Cambridge Primary, Catherine Hall Primary, Clifton Primary, Corinaldi Avenue Primary, Duncans Primary, Enfield Primary, Granville All-Age, Granville Primary, Hastings Primary, Howard Cooke Primary, Irwin Primary, Mt Hermon Primary, Ocho Rios Primary, Petersfield Primary, Savanna- la- Mar Primary, St Ann’s Bay Primary and Wakefield Primary.