Bitter sweet Champs finale for Hydel’s Lawrence
BY PAUL A REID
Observer Writer
reidp@jamaicaobserver.com
It was a bitter sweet feeling for Hydel High’s Shadae Lawrence as she closed her high school track and field career by retaining the Class One discus title at the ISSA/GraceKennedy National Girls Athletics championships at the National Stadium on Wednesday.
She threw a personal best 48.66m and won her second gold medal, but it was two out of three goals as she missed getting the record 51.16m set two years ago by former Edwin Allen student Tara-sue Barnett.
“It was my PB, but I am a bit disappointed,” she told the Observer, “I went over the record during warm ups so I was hoping I would be able to break it in competition but I won so its not a big deal.”
The event was billed as a showdown between Lawrence and Edwin Allen’s Rochelle Frazer who she beat in an upset last year, but it was Excelsior High’s Shanice Love who took the silver with 48.01m and another Edwin Allen thrower Paul-Ann Gayle who took third with 47.87m.
Frazer finished fourth with 46.63m.
With the level of the competition, Lawrence said she was not expecting an easy passage, “Shanice Love threw 50.9m this season and so I expected it to be rough but I just stayed focussed and followed my coach’s instructions.”
While not being over-confident she said she knew she would do well and managed to “stay calm and try to get the techniques right and just get it over with.”
Lawrence opened her competition with 47.33m then improved to 47.67m before throwing what turned out to be the winning distance on her third attempt before fouling the next three throws in the top eight.
While Love and others were putting up big throws earlier in the season, Lawrence said she was biding her time, “I am not one of those athletes who do well early in the season, but I get ready and perform when it comes to championships, as that is what I am preparing for,” she told the Observer.
Lawrence, who is not a junior, says she will compete next at the Penn Relays in late April and will consider competing at the JAAA Senior Trials in June.
cap- Shadae Lawrence
LAWRENCE… I was hoping I would be able to break the record
