MONTEGO BAY, St James — Shot putter ODayne Richards highlighted Jamaica’s performances on yesterday’s third and final day of the XXIV Central American and Caribbean Senior Track and Field Championships in Morelia, Michoacan, Mexico with a World Championships ‘A’ qualifying standard 20.97m gold medal throw to retain his men’s shot put title won two years ago. Richards, who won the gold medal two years ago at the World University Games in China and the CAC Senior title in Puerto Rico, passed the World Championships ‘A’ qualifying mark of 20.60m as well as the old meet record of 20.21m held by Jamaica’s Dorian Scott and set in 2007.

His previous personal best was 20.31m set last year, and the new mark places him at joint 12th on the IAAF list for this year.

Jamaica won three throwing gold medals at the championships after Chad Wright and Allison Randall won the men’s and women’s discus throws, respectively.

Meanwhile, Jamaica won a further 10 medals, including five gold yesterday to finish with a total of 21, five short of the 26 they won two years ago in Puerto Rico when they topped the medal tables then.

Other Jamaicans who won gold medals yesterday were a historic gold for Darrell Garwood in the men’s high jump, Natoya Goule in the women’s 800m, Francine Simpson in the women’s long jump, and Danielle Dowie in the women’s 400m hurdles.

Hosts Mexico topped the medals tables with 47 — 17 gold, 19 silver and 11 bronze, followed by Jamaica with 11 gold, six silver and four bronze; Trinidad and Tobago were next with 13 medals, inclusive of five gold, four silver and four bronze.

Yesterday, Richards coach at the MVP track club Linval Swaby said he was “elated” by the reports and told the Jamaica Observer, “this was a long time in coming”.

He said the thrower, who won the National Senior Championships three weeks ago with a then season’s best 20.00m has been working hard in training and “now the hard work is finally paying off”.

Swaby told the Observer that there was more work to be done. “He was just short of the 21.00m mark and that’s where he has to be now,” he said.

Swaby added that “maturity over the last two years” has also helped Richards to be able to get to where he is.

Two Mexicans finished behind Richards — Josue Santana (17.74m) and discus silver medallist-Mario Cota (17.67m).

Garwood became the first Jamaican winner of the men’s high jump and only the third Jamaican man, in the 46-year history of the event, to medal in the event.

He cleared 2.22m, the same as silver medallist Jamal Wilson of the Bahamas to win on the count back, while Mexico’s Arturo Abascal was third with 2.10m.

Goule, the National Senior champion, who won a bronze two years ago, led a Jamaican quinella as she won the 800m in 2:02.02, leading home teammate Semoya Campbell, who took silver in 2:03.08 just edging out Cuba’s Rose Mary Almanza, who was third with 2:03.10.

The order was reversed in the men’s 800m where Cuban Andy Gonzalez won ahead of two Jamaicans, in 1:49.54 as Ricardo Cunningham took silver in 1:49.97 and national champion Jowayne Hibbert was third in 1:50.10.

National champion Francine Simpson won the gold in the women’s long jump with 6.49m, the first medal by a Jamaican woman since Elva Goulbourne’s silver in 2005. Bermuda’s Arantxa King took silver with 6.45m, while Bianca Stuart of the Bahamas was third with 6.42m.

Todea Kay Willis was fifth with 6.32m.

Dowie won back-to-back 400m hurdles for Jamaica after Andrea Sutherland won two years ago, running 56.39 seconds to beat Costa Rica’s Sharolyn Scott (57.74) and Mexico’s Zudikey Rodriguez (58.12).

Roxroy Cato ran 50.05 seconds for fourth in the men’s final, while Isa Phillips was seventh with 51.24 seconds.

The veteran Aleen Bailey won a third medal, silver in the women’s 200m for a complete set after winning bronze in the 100m on Friday, and gold in the 4x100m relays on Saturday.

Bailey clocked 23.08 seconds (-0.6m/s) behind St Vincent’s Kineke Alexander (23.00 seconds) with the Dominican Republic’s Marielys Sanchez third in 23.15 seconds just ahead of Jamaica’s Audra Segree, who ran 23.39 seconds.

Jason Livermore took bronze in the men’s 200m in 20.29 seconds as St Kitts and Nevis’ Antoine Adams won in 20.13 seconds and Trinidad’s Lalonde Gordon won the silver medal with 20.28 seconds.

The other Jamaican, Jermaine Brown, was eighth in 20.92 seconds.

Wilbert Walker was sixth in the triple jump with 15.73m, while neither 4x400m relay teams were able to medal, the women’s team of Bobby Gay Wilkins, Chriss-Ann Gordon, Goule and Kayon Robinson had finished second behind Trinidad and Tobago in 3:2.10 minutes, but was later disqualified.

Mexico moved up to second while the Bahamas took the bronze after the revised results.

The men’s team of Allodin Fothergill, Dane Hyatt, Dewayne Barrett and Omar Johnson finished fifth in 3:03.69.