SANTA CRUZ, St Elizabeth – Outstanding junior athlete Junelle Bromfield, who is the Courtney Walsh Student Excellence Award recipient for 2015, has become accustomed to high praise in recent years.

She got more of the same just recently when Supreme Ventures Foundation, sponsors of the Courtney Walsh Student Excellence Award, visited her school, St Elizabeth Technical High School (STETHS), to make presentations to her in the presence of the student body.

The 17-year-old sixth former was presented with an electronic tablet, and in recognition of her achievements her school received a cheque for $250,000 to be used for a special project.

Last October, Bromfield, who is a native of Braes River in St Elizabeth, and Wolmer’s Boys’ School footballer Javauni Garwood received the female and male Courtney Walsh Awards for excellence in sports and academics.

A citation hailed Bromfield as “an exemplary student athlete” despite “humble family circumstances”, which include being one of eight children to a single mother.

The citation said: “Junelle has won three consecutive 800m finals at the Issa Boys’ and Girls’ Athletics Championships (Champs) since 2013 and represented Jamaica at the 2014 CAC Junior Championships where she earned a silver medal in the 800m. She also represented the Americas in the 2014 Youth Olympics and went on to again represent her country at the 2015 Commonwealth [Youth] Games where she served as team captain and won gold in the 400m and 400m hurdles. Most recently, Junelle earned silver in the 400m hurdles at the 2015 Penn Relays.”

It added: “Junelle exemplifies what a student athlete can achieve through hard work and dedication. She displays the type of mind set which encourages anyone of poor or disadvantaged upbringing to look past their surroundings and strive to excel and create opportunities for their own upward mobility.”

Bromfield is a prefect at STETHS and gained six subjects at the June 2015 sitting of the CSEC exams, the citation said.

The Courtney Walsh Student Excellence Award is in honour of former Jamaica and West Indies cricket captain, fast-bowling legend Courtney Walsh. Launched in 2012 by Supreme Ventures Foundation, the award recognises a male and female athlete who excel academically while representing their respective schools in sport.