3rd J’can female discus thrower qualifies for London World Champs
KINGSTON, Jamaica — A third Jamaican female discus thrower, Tarasue Barnett, has qualified for the event at the IAAF World Championships in London after she attained the standard at the Tucson Elite Classic in Arizona tonight, throwing a personal best 61.66m.
Barnett a student at Grand Canyon University in the USA surpassed the World Championships qualifying mark of 61.20m in her first attempt and beat her previous lifetime best of 61.28m set in Irvine California in April last year and well past her previous seasons best of 59.95m.A second Jamaican Sasha-gay Marston was eighth 53.23m.The throw moved Barnett up to 21st on the IAAF performance chart as she joins new national record holder Shadae Lawrence and the woman she passed Kellion Knibb as the three Jamaica women who have qualified for the discus throw at the World Championships.It is the first time that three Jamaican women would be qualifying for the event at the IAAF World Championships a year after the same threesome created history at the Rio Olympics.So far six Jamaican throwers have attained the qualifying marks for their events in London, the three female discus throwers; Fedrick Dacres who is the World leader in the men’s discus throw’; male shot putter O’Dayne Richards and female shot putter Danniel Thomas.Paul Reid