PHILADELPHIA, USA — After a two-year break, Jamaican high schools will resume their quest for honours at the Penn Relays which is set to get under way this morning at Franklin Field in Philadelphia, under what is expected to be challenging conditions.

Twenty-six Jamaican high schools and five college teams are down to participate in the three-day relay carnival and will also see dozens of Jamaicans competing for their respective American universities as the event resume after the break that caused by the novel coronavirus pandemic.

While there have been a number of changes to the event, which started over 125 years ago, the tradition of only high school girls taking part on Thursday will remain and will see Edwin Allen and Holmwood Technical defending titles.

Jamaicans will take part in the preliminaries of three relays — 4x100m, 4x400m and 4x800m today as well as six individual events — the jumps and throwing events.

The finals of the relay events will be contested on Friday, the same day the high school boys will start their competition with the preliminaries of the 4x100m and 4×800, as well as the field events.

Based on the results so far this season, it could be a straight battle between Edwin Allen High in the 4x100m and Hydel High who were expected in Philadelphia last night.

Earlier this week, Corey Bennett, head coach of the Hydel High team, told the Jamaica Observer they were taking a small team of just six girls who are expected to include Class Two athletes Alana Reid and Kerrica Hill.

Edwin Allen are the defending champions in the 4x100m and after running 43.28 seconds to win the Class One final at the ISSA/GraceKennedy Champs earlier this month, will start favourites here after returning three members of the team that set the Penn Relays record 43.62 seconds in 2019.

Serena Cole and the Clayton twins — Tina and Tia — were part of the world Under-20 record-breaking team at the Carifta Games with Brandi Hall, who was part of the Champs record-breaking team, expected to join them.

Eleven Jamaican teams are down to take part in the 4x100m with the fastest nine overall from today’s preliminaries qualifying for the Championships of Americas final, while the next nine fastest international team will contest the international final.

The Jamaican teams are Edwin Allen High, Holmwood Technical, Hydel High, Immaculate Conception, William Knibb Memorial, Petersfield High, The Queen’s School, St Catherine High, St Elizabeth Technical (STETHS), St Jago High, and Vere Technical.

New champions will be crowned in the 4x400m with Holmwood Technical, who won in 2019, absent from the mile relays this year, but after their 3:35.38 run at the ISSA Champs with Brianna Lyston on the anchor leg, Hydel High, champions here in 2017 and 2018, could be the team to watch.

Ten Jamaican teams are set to contest the qualifying set to start at 2:52 pm local time, (3:52 pm Jamaican time). They are St Jago, Edwin Allen, Excelsior High, Vere Technical, Petersfield High, Bellefield High, Alphansus Davis, St Catherine High, The Queen’s School, and Hydel High.

Just two Jamaican schools — defending champions Edwin Allen High and Holmwood Technical — are set to contest the 4x800m which will see the qualifying rounds start at 9:00 am local time today.

Meanwhile, the individual events will be decided today, Carifta Games Under-20 champion Annishka McDonald of St Jago High is the top-ranked athlete in the high jump where she will be joined by Vere Technical’s ISSA Champs Class 2 winner Torian Caven.

Edwin Allen’s Cole, who is unbeaten all year, including doubles at both the ISSA Champs and Carifta Games, is the number two ranked in the long jump while St Jago High’s Kay-Lagay Clarke is number three with Vere Technical’s Chloe Palmer also in the field.

Three Jamaicans are in the high school girls triple jump — COCAA Western Champs winner and Carifta Trials second-place finisher Tawani Murray of Petersfield High and the Excelsior High pair of Rhianna Lugg and Jade-Ann Smith who was second at Champs.

Camperdown High’s Britannia Johnson, the Carifta Games Under-20 silver medallist, is ranked number three in the shot put, followed by St Jago High’s Jamora Alves, the ISSA Champs Class One silver medallist, her teammate Tafada Wright, Juliet Smith of Immaculate Conception and Petersfield High’s Marsha McKoy are also down to compete.

Carifta Games Under-20 discus throw champion Cedricka Williams of Holmwood Technical and Camperdown’s Britannie Johnson, who won the silver medal, will continue their battle here while St Jago High’s Abigail Martin, Victoria Christie of Camperdown, the Class 2 bronze medallist, Maja Henry of Immaculate Conception and Zavien Bowen of Petersfield High will take part, while St Catherine High’s Natalie Albert will be the lone Jamaican high school athlete in the javelin throw.