Reigning Carifta Games champion Shaquena Foote of Petersfield High School and Excelsior High School’s Devontie Archer produced World Under-20 leading times and personal bests to win their respective 400m hurdles titles on yesterday’s third and final day of the Carifta Trials at National Stadium.

After placing third in the 400m final on Saturday in which she was also the defending champion, Foote produced a sublime run and clocked 57.60 seconds to beat Hydel High School’s Garriel White, the previous world leader, while Archer went out hard and could not be caught, crossing the line in 50.88 seconds.

Meanwhile, Foote’s teammate Antonio Watson also produced a scintillating personal best and World Under-20 leading 20.52 seconds (1.4m/s) to win the Under-20 200m final.

Foote beat her previous best of 58.05 seconds set last year when she won the Carifta Games title in the Cayman Islands, after taking over the lead following the fifth hurdle yesterday.

White pulled close to her at the seventh hurdle but lost momentum at the ninth barrier, allowing Foote the space she needed to speed away and win as the Hydel High School student also clocked a personal best 58.06 seconds, beating the 58.86 seconds set three weeks ago at G C Foster College.

Archer was nearly perfect in his execution and came off the final curve just ahead of Tarrant High School’s Jeremy Bembridge and was too strong over the last two flights of hurdles and surpassed his previous best of 51.20 seconds set at the ISSA Boys’ and Girls’ Athletics Championships last year.

He also took over the world lead from Qatar’s Amor Ebed Abdalmujied who had run 51.74 seconds in South Africa on March 3.

Kingston College’s Rayon Campbell was second with 51.44 seconds and Calabar High School’s Dean Clarke was third with 52.40 seconds, both lifetime bests.

Camperdown High School’s Roshawn Clarke won the boys’ Under-17 400m hurdles in a new personal best 52.25 seconds, beating St Jago High School’s Jaheen Bell with 52.65 seconds and Kingston College’s Antonio Forbes with 53.56 seconds.

Defending Carifta Games champion Quaycian Davis of St Jago High School won the girls’ Under-17 event in 1 minute 01.36 seconds, beating her teammate Jade-Ann Dawkins (1:03.84 minutes) in an event that saw just two runners showing up.

After pulling up in the 400m preliminaries on Friday evening due to what was described as a “wardrobe malfunction”, Watson was in superb form in the half-lap yesterday, running away for a comfortable win. This was followed by 100m champion DeAndre Watkin of Jamaica College in second place in 20.70 seconds, also a personal best, and Rajay Morris of Clarendon College third in 20.90 seconds.

Watson took over the world lead from New Zealand’s Edward Osei-Nketia who ran 20.88 seconds earlier yesterday, in Christchurch.

Clarendon College’s Richard Nelson took the Under-17 title with a wind-aided 21.45 seconds (2.2m/s), beating Alicke Cranston of St Elizabeth Technical High School (21.61 seconds) and Deshaun Gordon of Charlemont High School with 21.77 seconds.

Hydel High School’s Shenese Walker took the Under-20 girls’ 200m crown with a new lifetime best 23.34 seconds (1.5m/s), and Holmwood Technical High School’s Brandy Hall upgraded her third place in the 100m to take second in 23.37 seconds, also a personal best. St Jago High School’s Joanna Reid, the early leader, was third in 23.48 seconds.

Edwin Allen High School’s Toni-Ann Forbes took the Under-17 girls’ 200m final in a wind-aided 23.98 seconds (2.2m/s) ahead of two runners from Rusea’s High School, Crystal Chambers with 24.09 seconds and Lavanya Williams with 24.25 seconds.

Kay-Lagay Clarke, the silver medallist at the Carifta Games last year, won the Under-17 triple jump yesterday with a best mark of 12.18m (0.9m/s), to beat her teammate Kahdijah Bailey with 11.72m (1.3m/s) and Wolmer’s High School for Girls’ Malaika Cunningham with 11.30m (-1.2m/s).

Sheniela Williams of Edwin Allen High School won the girls’ Under-17 javelin with a best mark of 33.43m. Holmwood Technical High School’s Cedricka Williams was second with 30.64m, and Morant Bay High’s Jaunel Dalhouse third with 28.35m.