AUSTIN, Texas — Lamara Distin is the new Jamaican women’s high jump record holder after she cleared 1.96m to win the event at the 94th Clyde Littlefield Texas Relays in Austin, Texas.           

The Texas A&M junior broke the 1.93m set in May 2010 by Sheree Francis-Ruff and set a Texas A&M school record, is the fifth best collegian all-time and is a world championships qualifying mark.

The mark beat her previous best of 1.90m set last year while placing second at the NCAA Division One championships at Hayward Field and it was also the best performance in the event ever at the Mike Myers Field.

She now holds both the outdoor and indoor records after she cleared 1.92m to win the event at the Don Kirby Elite Indoor meet at the Albuquerque Convention Center in Albuquerque, New Mexico in February, and which she equalled while winning the NCAA Indoor title earlier this month.

She broke the previous national indoor record of 1.90m set in March 2002 at a meet in Boston, USA by Maresa Cadienhead and beat her previous best 1.88m which had seen her tied with two other jumpers for second place.

Paul A Reid