Track and field fans will get a final chance, beginning today at the start of the four-day Jamaica Athletics Administrative Association’s (JAAA) National Senior and Junior Championships, to see Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce compete at the National Stadium.

Fraser-Pryce, who will be seeking to make the Jamaica team in the women’s 100m as well as the women’s 4x100m relay, announced earlier this week she would be hanging up her spikes after this season, her 18th representing Jamaica at the senior level.

The Trials will be the first major track meet that will be held since news broke last week that four Jamaican field event athletes were in the process of transferring allegiance to Turkey. Two of them, Olympic medallists Wayne Pinnock in the men’s long jump and Rajindra Campbell in the men’s shot put, are registered to compete, even though it is left to be seen if either will actually turn up.

Olympic Games men’s discus record holder Roje Stona had not submitted an entry while it is understood Olympic Games triple jump finalist Jaydon Hibbert is still recuperating from injuries that affected his participating at the Olympic Games last year.

More than 600 Jamaican athletes will be seeking to make teams to the World Athletics Championships to be held in Tokyo, Japan in mid September; NACAC Under 18/23 to be held in Nassau, Bahamas in July and the Pan-American Juniors to be held in South America in August.

At a press conference held at the JAAA offices on Monday, Ludlow Watts, chairman of the organising committee, indicated that all was in place for the championships.

Watts is expecting high-level competition all around, stating: “Every day will be spectacular. Thursday is usually mostly preliminaries, but we’ll also have the women’s high jump and long jump finals. On Friday, the action heats up with the 400m semi-finals and both the men’s and women’s 100m finals at 9:45 and 9:50 pm, respectively.”

The senior finals scheduled for today’s opening day are the women’s long jump and women’s high jump as well as the Girls’ Under-18 and Under-20 triple jump, Girls’ Under-17, and Under-20 discus throw and Girls’ javelin.

World Championships finalists and Commonwealth Games champion Lamara Distin should retain her national title in the high jump while Ackelia Smith will be looking to win back-to-back long jump titles.

A number of long jumpers will try to get the qualifying mark for the World Championships including Nia Robinson, who graduated from the University of Nebraska earlier this year; Aaliyah Foster, a finalist at the NCAA Outdoor Championships earlier this month; and Machaeda Linton of Louisiana State University.

Much of the attention today, however, will be on the first rounds of the men’s and women’s 100m and 400m events.

While there will be sentimental support for Fraser-Pryce to end her career with an appearance in the women’s 100m final in Tokyo, she will have a tough time of it against arguably one of the toughest fields over the four days of competition.

The Clayton twins — Olympic finalist Tia and Racers Grand Prix champion Tina — will be ready and waiting to take the baton as the next generation, along with national junior record holder Alana Reid.

Shericka Jackson has a place on the team already with her bye in the 200m as the defending champion but will be going after a fourth-straight title in the 100m, while Krystal Sloley, Shenese Walker, who ran under 11.00 seconds this month, a resurgent Briana Williams and Niesha Burgher are hoping to be in the final on Friday.

Bets will be on Olympic silver medallist Kishane Thompson, multiple finalists at major championships Oblique Seville and World Indoor medallist Ackeem Blake to take the spots in the men’s 100m come Friday.

However, Bryan Levell, who had a wind-aided 19.79 seconds in the 200m in early June, Sandrey Davison, schoolboy Gary Card, first year professional DeAndre Daley and the veteran Julian Forte are hoping to crash the party.

The women’s 400m is expected to be interesting with national record holder and national champion Nickisha Pryce hoping to make up for not getting to the final at the Olympic Games last year.

Dejanae Oakley ran 49.65 seconds for second at the NCAA Outdoor nationals two weeks ago and could be the dark horse favourite this weekend while Stacey-Ann Williams, who made her first senior team in an individual event last year, and former junior representative Shaquena Foote, who ran 50.95 seconds in May, could be seen as candidates for one of the spots come Sunday’s final.

After last year’s experiment with two rounds in the men’s 400m to facilitate an ill-fated attempt to qualify a men’s 4x400m relay team to the Olympic Games, the men will return to three rounds in the 400m.

Antonio Watson, who it is understood might not be at his very best, has a bye as the defending World champion but there is an expectation that a handful of young quarter-milers will challenge for places.

Bovel McPherson, who failed to make it to the final of the National Junior College championships final after running 44.78 seconds earlier, is at the front of the line, followed by Zandrion Barnes, Shemar Chambers, Demar Francis and Shaemar Uter.

Jamaica’s Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce will begin competition at her final National Senior Championships in the 100m heats today starting at 6:50 pm at the National Stadium. (Photo: AFP)