Hydel’s Shania Myers clinches heptathlon crown
HYDEL High’ Shania Myers won the gruelling Girls’ Heptathlon Open event held over the final two days of the ISSA/GraceKennedy Boys’ and Girls’ Athletics Championships at the National Stadium, scoring a creditable 4876 points after leading Friday’s first day with 3120 points after four events.
Myers led from the first event (100m) on Friday, and continued to compile points through the next six events, always placing in the top four. She finished ahead of Edwin Allen High’s Patreece Clarke (4775 points) who was competing in the multi-event for the first time. Excelsior High’s Teiolla Harvey, who was sixth last year with 3651 points, took third place this time around with 4420.
The 100m hurdles, high jump, shot put and the 200m were contested on Friday while the long jump, javelin throw and 800m were staged on the final day.
Myers came into Saturday’s second day with a 261-point lead over Clarke and asserted herself immediately by winning the long jump with a mark of 5.39m (0.8m/s), adding another 668 points.
Clarke stayed right behind her with 5.20m for 614 points, while Harvey jumped 5.18m.
Clarke made up a lot of points in the javelin with a mark of 35.06m. Harvey threw 29.76m as Myers could only manage 28.75m, while Petersfield High’s Aleisha Clarke and Shoin Clarke of Gaynstead High both went over 30 metres.
Myers, however, held on in the 800m, running 2:34.60 minutes, the second best time overall behind Shericka Thomas of Glengoffe High who ran 2:25.42.
On Friday’s first day Myers had taken the lead from the first event, running 13.66 seconds for the hurdles for 1027 points, followed by Clarke with 14.05 seconds (971 points) and Harvey with 15.13 seconds (825 points).
She then cleared 1.53m in the high jump for 655 more points, but it was Holmwood Technical’s Brishawn Grant who had the best clearance of 1.62m while Harvey and Mireya Simpson of Immaculate Conception both cleared 1.56m.
Myers’ 10.69m was the best in the shot put for 575 points, Simpson had a mark of 9.96m and Clarke of Gaynstead High threw 9.74m.
Clarke had the fastest 200m time of the day, running 24.83 seconds, followed by Myers’ 25.26 seconds and Thomas with 25.30 sceonds.
