Tina Clayton leads explosive Juniors at ‘trials’
Personal best and world Under-20 top five performances from Tina Clayton of Edwin Allen High and Alicke Cranston of St Elizabeth Technical highlighted Thursday’s first day of the Jamaica Athletics Administrative Association (JAAA) Ministry of Health/Supreme Ventures National Junior Championships at National Stadium.
Clayton ran 11.25 seconds (0.0m/s) to win the Under-20 girls’ 100m, a world Under-18 leading mark and the fourth best in Under-20, while Cranston clocked 10.37 seconds (1.2m/s), third best in the world to lead the Jamaican sprinting crew to the World Under-20 Championships set to start August 17 in Nairobi, Kenya.
Meanwhile, Holmwood Technical’s talented discus thrower Cedricka Williams threw a personal best and world Under-18 leading 53.42m to win the girls’ Under-18 discus throw event and Hydel High’s Shemonique Hazle jumped a massive personal best 6.27m (1.1m/s) to win the girls’ Under-18 long jump.
Clayton was supreme as she cruised to an easy win, under her previous best of 11.38 seconds set in May at the ISSA Champs, which is also the 12th fastest all time in the Under-18 age group.
Kerrica Hill of Hydel High was second with a perosnal best 11.43 seconds, while Tia Clayton equalled her season’s best 11.60 seconds to place third.
Cranston smashed his previous best 10.56 seconds as he stormed to a brilliant win, dragging Bouwahjgie Nkrumie of Kingston College to a personal best 10.47 seconds, fourth best in the Under-18 group, while Cranston’s teammate Orlando Wint was third, also running a personal best 10.55 seconds.
Edwin Allen’s Serena Cole won the Under-18 girls’ 100m in 11.42 seconds (1.1m/s), Alana Reid of Hydel High was second with 11.62 seconds, Petersfield High’s Alexis James took third with 11.67 seconds while Rusea’s High’s 15-year-old Lavanya Williams was fourth in 11.71 seconds, all personal best times.
St Catherine High’s Sandrey Davidson was a surpise winner of the Under-20 boys’ 100m, running 10.43 seconds (0.8m/s), beating St Jago High’s Andrew Gillips, also given the same time as the winner. Excelsior’s Alexavier Monfries was third in 10.46 seconds, all new life time bests.
Williams continued her brilliant season in the discus throw and solidified her spot on the team to the World Under-20 Championships.
Her mark on Thursday exceeded her previous best of 51.27m set in March at a meet at Excelsior High and is tied for the eighth best in the world in the Under-20 age group.
Williams, who broke the Class Two record at the ISSA Championships in May, had three throws over the World Under-20 qualifying mark of 49.00m as she also recorded marks of 50.13m and 40.51m.
The Camperdown twins Britannia and Brittannie Johnson were second and third with 42.16m and 41.10m, respectively.
St Jago High’s Kayla Davis-Edwards was second in the Under-20 event and the first Jamaican with 45.89m, Roxene Simpson of Clarendon College was next with 42.76m with Damali Williams of Edwin Allen fourth with 42.53m.
Indian athlete Krishna Jayasankar of Throwers R Us finished first with 46.23m.
Despite jumping a wind-legal personal best 7.53m (0.0m/s) Calabar High’s Luke Brown and a season best 7.56m (0.56m) by St Jago High’s Kavian Kerr, both are still just shy of the qualifying mark of 7.58m.
Brown, who has already achieved the qualifying standard in the triple jump, won the event Thursday with a wind-aided 7.65m (2.1m/s), while Calabar’s Jordan Turner, who jumped a personal best 7.82m, third best in the world in the Under-20 category, was third yesterday with a wind-aided 7.56m (3.9m/s).
Hydel High’s Shemonique Hazle jumped a massive personal best 6.27m (1.1m/s) to win the girls’ Under-18 long jump, well over the 6.15m qualifying mark, beating her previous best of 6.00m set in May this year.
Kay-Lagay Clarke of St Jago was second with a personal best 5.95m (0.1m/s), while Cole of Edwin Allen was third with a wind-aided 5.80m (4.0m/s).
Edwin Allen’s Ackelia Smith, who also has the triple jump standard, won the girls’ Under-20 long jump event with a wind-aided 6.01m (2.5m/s), well below her best 6.13m set at the ISSA Champs in May.
Smith’s second best jump of 5.93m (1.4m/s) was still good enough for the win as St Jago High’s Aaliyah Lindsay took second with a wind-aided 5.91m (2.5m/s). Hydel High’s Velecia Williams was third with 5.64m (-0.6m/s).
Cole and Shantae Foreman of St Jago, who will compete with the senior women, are the other Jamaicans with the standard.
Jamaica College’s J’Voughnn Blake and St Jago’s Tafar-Hi Hinds have pencilled their names on the list for the 800m after placing second and third in the Under-20 final, running under the qualifying mark of 1:50.80 minutes.
Blake, who has a personal best 1:48.86 set at the ISSA Champs, clocked 1:50.40 and Hinds was right behind him with a personal best 1:50.47. Blake’s Jamaica College teammate Handal Roban of St Vincent, running as a guest, was first across the line with 1:49.82 seconds.
Jessica McLean of Edwin Allen and Sancia Smith of St Jago High, both ran personal best times in the Under-20 girls’ 800m, but fell just short of the qualifying mark of 2:08.70m.
McLean won with 2:08.78 well under her previous 2:11.97, while Smith ran 2:08.93 seconds, beating her previous 2:10.58 seconds.
Alesia Douglas of St Jago was third with 2:10.94.
Rickeisha Simms of Edwin Allen won the Under-18 girls’ 800m final in 2:12.58, beating Kishay Rowe of Alphansus Davis High (2:12.75) and Shone Walters (2:13.14) of St Mary High.
Jamaica College’s Kemario Bygrave won the Under-18 boys’ 800m running 1:52.68 to beat the St Elizabeth Technical pair of Adrian Nethersole (1:54.44) and Rashid Green (2:03.37).
St Jago’s Latavia Galloway won the Under-20 javelin with 40.18m, beating Edwin Allen’s Kadine Brown who threw 28.00m while Jamaica College’s Jemar Ferguson was the only competitor in the Under 18 boys’ event and threw a personal best 55.62m.