The versatile Roshawn Clarke has turned his attention to the 200m at Jamaica’s national Junior and Senior Championships, skipping his pet 400m hurdle event for which he is the World Under-20 record holder.

The 21-year-old of Swept Track Club was second in his 200m semi-final in 20.63 (-2.9) to Christopher Taylor’s 20.49. Clarke will enter the final with the second fastest time, and all eyes will be on him to see if he is the real deal over the 200m.

In the 400m hurdles, Clarke won bronze in 2022 at the World Under-20 Championship and was fourth at the senior World Championship in 2023. His 47.34 is the fastest-ever run by a Jamaican, but surprisingly, he has decided to forgo the event.

“I mean, me and coach, we have been communicating about this season from the end of last season. We just want to try something new, have a little bit of fun. Getting our body recovered from the hurdles,” said Clarke.

“Over the years, we’ve been doing hurdles, you know, 400m hurdles takes a lot. So, we’re just trying to experience something new,” Clarke revealed.

Clarke is one of the most versatile runners in Jamaica and by extension the world. He has a personal best of 44.98 over 400m, 20.41 for 200m and 10.46 for 100 and 6.62 over the 60m.

“I’m not new to the sprinting section of track. So, I’d say it’s pretty fun to be back because I was a sprinter before I was a hurdler. So, I’m just having some fun this year,” he explained.

Clarke, who has ran the 4x400m and mixed 4x400m relays for Jamaica, said he was contemplating doing the 400m at this national championship.

“I wanted to do it at this year’s championship, but it wasn’t connecting because earlier in the season I was so fast and then carrying it over into the 400m, I wasn’t getting the best execution. So, we just follow through with that and go for the 200m,” said Clarke.

Clarke, a very deceptive sprinter, has held his own amongst the fastest in the country and could very well be crowned 200m champion.

He showed good speed and actually led in his semis before Taylor passed him late on.

“I came off the curve in the lead. I was just conserving a bit because we both planned the race before we ran. So, he said I should check for him at 80m,” Clarke revealed.

“I didn’t see him. So, actually, I came off the turn, and I didn’t see anybody. So, I tend to step off the gas a little bit and then I see him come by and I’m like, okay, he’s here. So, I went through for a second. So, it’s nothing that I couldn’t manage,” he added.