UPDATE: Three athletes removed from Jamaica’s world champs team
KINGSTON, Jamaica — The Jamaica Athletics Administrative Association (JAAA) has reduced the number of athletes travelling to the London World Championships from 59 to 56.
“Please note that some alternative was inadvertently added to the team. Those names have been removed. Sorry for the inconvenience caused,” said the statement released this morning at 4:45 am.
The names of Calabar High school star Dejour Russell, Andrae Clarke and Kenroy Anderson have been removed from the list. Russell was named as the fourth 110m hurdles runner with Omar McLeod, Hansle Parchment and Ronald Levy.
Clarke was named as the fourth 400m hurdler behind Jaheel Hyde, Kemar Mowatt and Ricardo Cunningham while Anderson who finished fourth in the 200m at the Senior Championship was previously listed but removed also.
The incomparable Usain Bolt, Rio Olympic gold medallists, Elaine Thompson and Omar McLeod along with defending hurdles champion Danielle Williams, head a list of 56 athletes, which now consists 27 males and 29 females selected for the London World Championship between August 4-13.
Bolt, 30, who will be retiring at the end of the championships, will be defending his 100m title he won in 2009, 2013 and 2015. He is joined by Yohan Blake, who won the 100m title in 2011, as Jamaica seek to continue its domination of the sprints.
Bolt will only be competing in the 100m and a weakened 4x100m relay team that will be without Asafa Powell, who has not recovered in time to prove his fitness after withdrawing from the Senior Championships.
Meanwhile, Thompson leads the female sprinters into action in what is really a team in transition without the likes of Veronica Campbell-Brown, Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, Sherone Simpson or Kerron Stewart.
Thompson, the Rio Olympic double champion, will be competing only in the 100m and is a heavy favourite to defend the title won by Fraser-Pryce in 2013 and 2015.
Jamaica will be well represented in the field events with Fedrick Dacres highly touted for a medal in the discus and O’Dayne Richards in the shot put.
Howard Walker
