TOKYO, Japan — Jamaican quarter-milers Antonio Watson, Delano Kennedy, Rusheen McDonald and Bovel McPherson enter the World Athletics Championships with little fanfare and stardust to their names, but history-making 400m standout Bert Cameron is not ruling out another surprise in the one-lap event.

Watson stunned the world in 2023 when he powered home to win a shocking gold medal in Budapest in a time of 44.22 seconds but it would require a second strike of lightning for history to repeat itself, with none of the Jamaicans presenting a reasonable shout for a medal in Tokyo.

McPherson is the fastest Jamaican this year with a time of 44.78 but 27 athletes at the championships have already gone faster this season. McDonald, the national record holder (44.89), Watson (44.89) and Kennedy (44.91) would all require a remarkable effort to get among the medals.

The event is set to get underway on Sunday at 6:35 pm (Saturday at 4:35 am, Jamaica time) with the heats, and Cameron — the first World Championships gold medal winner in the event from the inaugural staging in 1983 — is hanging on to hope that another surprise is in store.

“As an old quarter miler I would never say, never. On the day, when they go out there you can see what they have inside of them from the first round. When you look at them in the first round you can say to yourself and say to them, ‘It seems like we can move on to the final, based on what they present,” Cameron told the Jamaica Observer.

“I mean, look at our last world champion. He went out there from round one and looked like a medallist and he went out there and won the gold. So we can’t look at the guys now and because they didn’t run as fast as they wanted to run at the trials — maybe they didn’t peak yet and maybe they will come here and peak — so we have to wait and see and hope for the best,” Cameron added.

Cameron also believes it is important that athletes entering the discipline be exposed to the country’s history in the event as he believes this will encourage more talent to target the 400m.

Jamaica is one of the most successful countries in the men’s 400m at the Olympic Games and World Athletics Championships, with five Olympic medals (two gold, two silver and one bronze) — ranking third overall — as well as five (two gold, three bronze) at the World Championships to claim the second most medals at that level.

“I don’t think that they get enough chance to appreciate our story. We have to tell them our story for them to understand what we have achieved from 1948 and 1952, and once they get that in their head — with Herb McKenley, George Rhoden, Arthur Wint and Leslie Laing — when they get to that and understand the history they will understand that Jamaica is also a quarter-mile country and they will develop that attitude and move from there,” Cameron said.

Also on Sunday, Romaine Beckford and Raymond Richards should line up in men’s high jump qualification, starting at 6:40 pm (4:40 am Jamaica time).

“I have been training for moments like these so it’s time for me to execute what I have been taught and see what it brings,” said World Indoor bronze medallist Richards.

“Experience teaches wisdom and I feel I have enough knowledge of what to do and what not to do. I don’t want to put myself under too much pressure; it’s just for me to execute my technique and glory will come,” he added in reference to how his World Indoors experience can help his efforts in Tokyo.

At 7:25 pm (5:25 am on Saturday, Jamaica time) the women’s 400m heats will begin with Jamaicans Nikisha Pryce, Stacey-Ann Williams and Dejanea Oakley bowing into action.

— Andre Lowe

Antonio Watson Photo: Observer file