Simone Facey
Jamaican Olympian Simone Facey is now a certified coach of athletics.
The 37-year-old Facey, a World Championship gold, silver and bronze medallist and an Olympic 4x100m silver medalist, made the announcement on Facebook on Monday that she is now a USA Track and Field Certified Level 1 coach.
She completed the course on August 26, 2022.
Facey represented Jamaica for more than two decades ever since 2000 when she won her first medal, a silver in the 200m at the Carifta Games held in St George’s, Grenada.
The former Vere Technical star also won six gold medals at the CAC Junior Championships between 2000 and 2002. Most notably, she was a member of Jamaica’s U20 4x100m relay team that included Sherone Simpson, Aneisha McLaughlin, and Kerron Stewart, which won 4x100m gold at the 2002 World U20 championships in Kingston.
She was last seen in competition during Jamaica’s National Championships in 2019 when she ran 23.21 to finish fifth in the finals of the 200m.
She was recently in the stands at the 2022 World Athletics Championships in Eugene, Oregon, cheering on her countrymen and women.
Leighton Levy is a journalist with 28 years’ experience covering crime, entertainment, and sports. He joined the staff at SportsMax.TV as a content editor two years ago and is enjoying the experience of developing sports content and new ideas. At SportsMax.tv he is pursuing his true passion - sports.
Great Britain’s Hughes, Asher-Smith get 200m victories at Jamaica Athletics Invitational
Great Britain’s Zharnel Hughes and Dina Asher-Smith took victories in the men’s and women’s 200m events at the inaugural Jamaica Athletics Invitational at the National Stadium in Kingston on Saturday.
Hughes, a bronze medallist in the 100m at last year’s World Championships in Budapest, produced a season’s best 19.96 to win ahead of American Fred Kerley (20.17) and France’s Pablo Mateo (20.20).
“I feel really good. I think this is my second 200m race of the season. When I opened up I wasn’t ready so tonight I was just testing out the waters. We’re starting to sharpen up but not as much because it’s a long season,” Hughes said after the race.
“To run 19.96 now, I’m very happy. I just need to stay healthy and continue to execute my races accordingly and everything will be okay,” he added.
2019 World Champion Asher-Smith narrowly won the women’s event in 22.51 ahead of the Ivory Coast’s Jessika Gbai (22.53) with Jamaica’s Lanae-Tava Thomas running 22.84 for third.
Asher-Smith says she was hoping for a quicker time and has some things to work on.
“I’m in really good shape so I was hoping to get a quicker time today. Clearly, I’ve got some stuff that I’ve got to work on so I’m going to go back to Austin and work on them but I’m happy to have won here in Jamaica,” she said.
USA’s Holmes, Great Britain’s Hudson-Smith win 400m races at Jamaica Athletics Invitational
American Alexis Holmes and great Britain’s Matthew Hudson-Smith emerged as the winners of the women’s and men’s 400m races at the inaugural Jamaica Athletics Invitational at the National Stadium in Kingston on Saturday.
Holmes, a member of the USA’s gold medal-winning mixed relay team at the World Championships in Budapest last year and the World Relays this year in Nassau, ran 50.31 to lead an American 1-2-3 with Brittany Brown running 51.21 in second and Naasha Robinson running 51.81 in third.
“I had a lot of fun. The energy was great,” Holmes said after the race.
“I was expecting a smooth race and just trying to get the win. I just try to stay relaxed and poised because I know I have a strong finish,” she added.
The men’s race saw World Championship silver medallist Matthew Hudson-Smith produce 44.69 to take the win ahead of American Matthew Boling (44.98) and Jamaica’s Zandrion Barnes (45.41).
“I’m a lot more healthier this year. I’ve got the best team in the world. My coach Gary Evans is a man with a plan and this year it’s all about being healthy when it matters,” he said after the race.
“It was a good executed race. We just wanted to come home strong and be composed. I’ve got Oslo, Europeans, Monaco and London so I’ve got a lot more races and training,” he added.
The Brit also gave props to World Champion Antonio Watson who ran 45.61 for fifth.
“Listen, he’s the reigning World Champion so I’ve got to give him respect. He came out here in front of his people and raced. He delivered when it mattered,” he said.
Clayton runs world leading 53.72 to win 400m hurdles at Jamaica Athletics Invitational; James-King upsets McMaster with personal best 48.39 to win men’s event
Two-time World Championship bronze medallist Rushell Clayton and Malik James-King emerged victorious in the women’s and men’s 400m hurdles events, respectively, at the inaugural Jamaica Athletics Invitational at the National Stadium in Kingston on Saturday.
Clayton looked in excellent early season form, running 53.72, a world leading time and her fastest season opener, to take the win ahead of American Anna Cockrell (53.76) and Jamaica’s Shian Salmon (54.57).
Clayton also tried out a new running pattern with 14 steps between hurdles.
“It felt amazing. I tried my best and I know my coach will be happy with that so I look forward to my next race which is next Sunday,” she said after the race.
“These ladies are who I compete against all the time. It’s an amazing feeling to always line up and compete against the best in the world,” Clayton added.
The men’s race saw Malik James-King spring an upset with a personal best 48.39 to win ahead of World Championship silver medallist Kyron McMaster (49.00) and Jaheel Hyde (49.48).
“I have a lot more to work on so I’m just going to be going back to the drawing board and listening to my coach,” James-King said after the race.
“I was surprised with the time, honestly. I expected 48 but I didn’t know an exact time. 48.3 is a really good time,” he added.
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