Well done!
Athletes from Petersfield High in Westmoreland highlighted an outstanding display by western-based athletes at last weekend’s Jamaica Athletics Administrative Association’s (JAAA) Carifta Trials at the National Stadium in Kingston.
Students from the Westmoreland school won or placed second in eight events over the two days, led by a brilliant world-leading and new personal best 20.08m by Kevin Nedrick in the Under-20 boys’ shot put, the second-best throw ever by a Jamaican junior male thrower, behind 20.15m set by Ashinia Miller in 2012.
There were also double wins for Spot Valley High’s Tyreese Reid and Rusea’s High’s Ackeem Colley in the boys’ Under-18 and Under-20 800m and 1,500 metre, respectively.
The trials will be used to select Jamaica’s team to participate in the Carifta Games to be held in Curacao from April 14-17. At least 14 athletes from the western region could be selected on the team.
Nedrick had a second personal best in the discus throw, placing second with 59.70m.
Reid, the red-hot favourite for the Class 1 800 metre at the Inter-Secondary Schools Sports Association Boys’and Girls’ Athletics Championships to be held just under three weeks’ time, continues to lower his time, running 1:51.11 seconds last weekend – the best by any schoolboy in the country so far this year.
He returned on Sunday to win the 1,500 metre in 4:01.97 seconds as Colley, the Champs bronze medallist in the Class 1 1,500m last year, was also a double winner.
The Rusea’s High athlete, who set the Western Championships 1,500m record last year, won the Under-20 800m in 1:52.11 seconds and the 1,500m in 3:54.50 seconds.
STETHS’s Shemar Salmon was second in the 1,500m in 3:54.81 seconds and second in the 5,000m in 15:34.01 seconds.
Antonio Watson of Petersfield lowered his personal best in the 400m to 47.08 seconds on his way to winning the Under-18 boys’ event, while STETHS’s Dashinelle Dyer (51.84) and Rhodes Hall’s Rovane Williams (52.40) were first and second in the Under-18 400m hurdles.
Cornwall College’s Kobe-Jordon Rhooms won the Under-20 boys’ high jump clearing 2.05m.
Daniel Cope of Petersfield won the Under -18 boys’ discus throw with 53.51m, beating his teammate Christopher Brown (48.84m), and was second in the shot put with 17.98m.
Devonery Gordon, also of Petersfield, won the Under-20 boys’ javelin with 57.09m.
On the female side, Petersfield High’s Shaquena Foote won the Under-18 girls’ 1,500m in 4:38.34 seconds and was second in the 800m in 2:08.99 seconds.
Rusea’s High’s Myesha Nott won the Under -20 girls’ triple jump with 12.75m (1.9m/s), while former STETHS athlete Junelle Bromfield won the Under-20 girls’ 400m in 52.75 seconds.