Technical leader of Jamaica’s World Athletics Under-20 team David Riley has hit back at critics of the team’s selection and tactics at the just-concluded championships in Eugene, Oregon, insisting that the decisions made by the coaching and management staff should be respected.

Riley, who was part of the management team that guided Jamaica to eight medals and third place in the placing table, said the performances of the athletes should speak for themselves, pointing to the number of finalists and strong times produced by the team.

“They need to really just chill and understand that the expertise to manage a team is dispatched to the championships,” said Riley upon the team’s arrival on Tuesday at the Norman Manley International Airport.

“They need to respect the judgment and the professionalism of the people who are there,” he added.

“The teams ran well. You can see it from the times that they ran. You can’t run faster than you’ve ever run and it’s a complaint. So we dismiss those and suggest that they be better students of the sport,” said Riley.

Jamaica finished fourth in the medals table with eight medals, inclusive of two gold, three silver, and three bronze. The United States of America topped the table with 24 medals (12 gold, seven silver, and five bronze), finishing ahead of Kenya with 11 medals and Italy in third with five, but their three gold medals put them ahead of Jamaica. Australia rounded out the top five with six medals.

However, Jamaica were third in the Placing Table with 89 points behind the Americans with 218 and Kenya with 92 points. South Africa, with 72 points, were fourth ahead of Japan in fifth on 69 points.

He continued: “We were in a lot of finals and pretty much looked like the Jamaican team of old. Just finding our way, won some medals, but overall it was a strong performance. We were third on the points table, which is usually where we are. We are still a top three nation in the world, so I think it was a good performance,” Riley reiterated.

Jamaica won two gold medals courtesy of team Captain Michael-Andre Edwards, who posted an impressive 17.08m to win the triple jump and the women’s 4×100 team of Sashana Johnson, Theianna-Lee Terrelonge, Natrece East, and Shanoya Douglas, who sped to 42.89, which is the fastest Under-20 time in the world.

Douglas was expected to win triple gold, but she had to settle for two silvers in the 100 and 200 metres behind American rising star Mia Maxwell, while Jamaica’s promising Gary Card had to play second fiddle to the star of the championship, Tate Taylor, who won the sprint double, taking the 100m in a personal best 9.94 (0.1 m/s) and the 200m in a championship record 19.83 (0.1 m/s).

The quartet of Jabari Matheson, Kristen Herbert, Jason Pitter, and Kevongaye Fowler broke ther national Under-20 record in the 4×400 mixed relay but failed to earn a medal.

“We were running 3:18 in the mixed relay and did not medal. We had a national record, which is crazy. We knew we could run 3:18 but never thought we would not get a medal with that kind of time,” Riley noted.

“We used to be 13.2, not making the finals in the sprint hurdles. You realise that, in fact, the performances have really stepped up. We just have to face that reality and work a little harder,” he added.

“I thought we prepared well. The athletes were well prepared. We had a couple of camps. The fact that we made all the relay finals speaks to the fact that the relay camps actually do work. We were the only nation to have made all six relay finals. I think we did well,” he emphasised.

Riley also addressed the concern of Jabari Matheson who ran three races in a 24-hour span, having participated in the heats of the mixed relay before running his individual 400m flat event.

“We gave him the option of running in the finals after the prelims and he wanted to because the team had a shot at the medal. He felt that the team was strong enough with the changes that we were proposing. And the kid wanted a medal, just like the rest of the team wanted a medal,” Riley explained.

“People can make their own statements, but the reality is when you’re on the ground and you talk to athletes…those who want to run and those who don’t want to run, that’s the team that goes out there,” he added.

He also explained the decisions on Shameika McLean, who was Jamaica’s best quarter-miler but missed the 4×400 relays.

“She couldn’t make it. She ran the round of the 400m with a heavily bandaged knee and also in the 4×400 relays heats.

“So she couldn’t make it, and you can’t run a final if you don’t make the prelims. And you can’t be arrogant in your approach to the prelims to say that any team you send out there is going to qualify,” said Riley.

“We don’t want to take that risk. We brought enough persons to the meet with the depth. And we knew we were short in terms of the depth on the female side for the 400m,” he explained.

“We couldn’t find enough girls to run at the trials and to run decent times. So it was always going to be a stretch for us at the 400 based on those who reported to the trials. So there was no second-guessing there.

RILEY…they need to respect the judgment and the professionalism of the people who are there (Photo: Observer file)