Odean Skeen intends to open his campaign towards this summer’s Olympic Games with a 60m dash in the second American Track League meeting in Fayetteville, Arkansas this weekend.
The talented 26-year-old sprinter, whose progress over the years has been stymied by injury, says he is fit and ready to go as he takes his first steps towards booking a spot on Jamaica’s team to Tokyo.
“Everything is fully fit. I am ready to go,” Skeen told Sportsmax.TV earlier today from his base in the United States where he trains under the watch of Michael Ford.
Skeen, who has a personal best of 9.98s, was a high school track star in Jamaica and was seen as the next great sprinter to emerge from the island famous for producing the likes of Usain Bolt, Donald Quarrie, Yohan Blake, Michael Frater and Nesta Carter.
However, hamstring injuries prevented him from fulfilling his potential. At Auburn University, it was an ankle problem that held him back and which eventually forced him to undergo surgery in 2018. The pandemic then disrupted his training and competition schedules but he now believes he is ready to take his first steps back into competition.
“Training is going great. I am getting stronger but I am going to be focusing on execution not so much on time,” said Skeen about his plans for this weekend.
He will be competing in his first race since he ran a windy 10.35s in Prairie View Texas on July 30 last year in the midst of the pandemic.
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.
LaFond, Paulino among winners at USATF LA Grand Prix
World champions Thea LaFond and Marileidy Paulino were among the winners on day two of the USATF LA Grand Prix at the UCLA Drake Stadium on Saturday.
LaFond produced 14.37m in the fifth round to win ahead of Jamaican two-time World Championship silver medallist Shanieka Ricketts (14.36m) and American Tori Franklin (13.87m).
LaFond made history in March when she became the first Dominican to win gold at a World Athletics Championships. She produced a national record 15.01m to take top spot at the World Indoor Championships in Glasgow, Scotland.
Elsewhere on Saturday, reigning World 400m champion Marileidy Paulino remained unbeaten this season with 50.27 to win ahead of World 800m champion Mary Moraa (50.56) and American Alexis Holmes (50.73).
2011 World champion Kirani James was second in the men's equivalent in a season's best 44.85 behind American 2022 World champion Michael Norman Jr who won in 44.53. Vernon Norwood was third in 44.86.
World Championship finalist and world U-20 record holder Roshawn Clarke opened his season in the 400m hurdles with a respectable 48.11 to finish second behind American Rai Benjamin who ran a world leading 46.64. World Championship silver medallist Kyron McMaster was third in 48.51.
Andrenette Knight ran a season’s best 54.69 for second in the women’s equivalent behind American Anna Cockrell who ran a season’s best of her own with 53.75. Cassandra Tate was third in 55.02.
On Friday's day one, Jamaica's Roje Stona threw 66.93m to win the men's discus ahead of Chile's Claudio Romero (64.12m) and the USA's Brian Williams (63.36m).
Oakley runs personal best 22.60 to win 200m title at Big 12 Championships; Texas sweeps men’s and women’s titles
Jamaican Texas sophomore Dejanea Oakley claimed her maiden Big 12 Outdoor title with gold in the women’s 200m at the Clyde Hart Track and Field Stadium in Waco, Texas on Saturday.
Oakley, who was the fastest qualifier from Thursday’s heats with 23.00, won comfortably on Saturday with a personal best 22.60, bettering her previous mark of 22.73 done at the Texas Invitational on April 26 this year.
TCU’s Iyana Gray was second in 22.81 while Texas’s Kenondra Davis was third in 22.82, just ahead of teammate Kevona Davis who ran 22.84 in fourth.
Kevon Davis went one better in the 100m with 11.32 to finish behind TCU’s Gray (11.24) and Texas Tech’s Rosemary Chukwuma (11.12).
Jamaican Baylor University senior Demar Francis was also a standout performer on Saturday.
First, he ran 45.44 to win the 400m title ahead of Oklahoma’s Richard Johnson (45.45) and Texas’s Logan Popelka (45.62) before returning to get third in the 200m final with a personal best 20.38.
Houston’s Shaun Maswanganyi won that race in 20.10 followed by Texas’s Nolton Shelvin (20.22).
Francis was also a part of Baylor’s 4x400m quartet who ran 3:03.49 to finish as runners-up to Texas Tech (3:03.09). Jamaican Shaemar Uter was a member of Texas Tech’s winning team.
Jamaican Houston senior Kelly-Ann Beckford ran 2:01.33 for second in the women’s 800m behind Oklahoma State’s Gabija Galvydyte (2:00.42). Texas’s Olivia Howell was third in 2:02.23.
The men’s 110m hurdles saw Bahamian Texas Tech sophomore Antoine Andrews run 13.63 for second behind Houston’s De’Vion Wilson who did 13.35 to take top spot. Texas Tech’s DeVontae Ford ran 13.67 in third.
In the field, Texas junior and Jamaican World Championship representative Ackelia Smith produced 13.92m to win the women’s triple jump ahead of Texas Tech’s Anne-Suzanna Fosther-Katta (13.62m) and Baylor’s Koi Johnson (13.44m).
Texas’s Trinidadian junior Kelsey Daniel produced 16.04m for silver in the men’s triple jump behind Oklahoma’s Brandon Green Jr who did 16.52m. Texas Tech’s Stacy Brown Jr jumped 15.78m for third.
At the end of proceedings, Texas were crowned champions of both the men’s and women’s categories.
Texas scored 134 points in the men’s section, 19 ahead of Texas Tech in second and 54 ahead of Iowa State in third.
The women were more dominant, securing 150 points compared to 98 from BYU and 96.5 from Texas Tech.
USA dominates sprint relay finals as World Relays concludes in the Bahamas
USA broke their own 10-year-old championship record to dominate the women’s 4x100m at the World Athletics Relays Bahamas 24, before their teammates threatened the men’s 4x100m mark to clinch another win in Nassau on Sunday (5).
After helping her nation to a heat win and Olympic qualification on Saturday, Gabby Thomas vowed they could go even quicker in the final. She wasn’t wrong.
The women’s 4x100m championship record of 41.88 had been set at the inaugural World Athletics Relays in Nassau in 2014. A decade on, another US quartet made history in the Bahamian capital, as Tamari Davis, Thomas, Celera Barnes and Melissa Jefferson combined to clock 41.85 and cap a successful campaign.
They won by almost a second, while France proved they will be a force at their home Olympics later this year by securing the runner-up spot in 42.75. Third place was claimed by Great Britain & NI in 42.80.
As she had done in the previous day’s heats, Davis got the race started for USA, running a strong first leg to put her nation ahead. Olympic and world 200m medallist Thomas, who joined Davis on USA’s world title-winning team in Budapest last year, was ready to take over and she maintained the advantage before handing the baton to Barnes.
They had put Jefferson in a great position and the win never looked in doubt, as the two-time world relay gold medallist surged down the home straight. The fight for second place was won by France, as Mallory Leconte – racing in lane one – held off Great Britain’s Aleeya Sibbons. Germany finished fourth and Australia fifth.
While her teammates posed for photos, Thomas left the track to prepare for the 4x400m final less than 20 minutes later, which USA also won.
The men’s 4x100m championship record of 37.38 was also set by USA in Nassau but in 2015, during the second edition of the event. It still stands, but only just, as Courtney Lindsey, Kenny Bednarek, Kyree King and Noah Lyles teamed up to run a world-leading 37.40.
That same US quartet had run 37.49 to win the heats and they were similarly dominant in the final, winning by almost half a second ahead of 2022 world champions Canada.
Olympic 200m champion Andre De Grasse anchored Canada to second place in 37.89. Olympic champions Italy crossed the line next, but the team was later disqualified for a changeover occurring outside the zone. As a result, France secured third place in 38.44, just 0.01 ahead of Japan and Great Britain who both clocked 38.45 and were separated by only one thousandth of a second.
“We were talking after the race about what else we can do,” said Lyles, who ran the anchor leg during USA’s world title win in Budapest after his individual 100m and 200m victories. “Me and Kyree can get more out of that exchange zone and Kenny and Kyree can do the same. We were faster today, but still, it is all about the zone.”
The team certainly looked in the zone. Lindsey ran the first leg, going up against Canada’s Aaron Brown. Bednarek then took over from Lindsey and ran the second leg against athletes including Italy’s Olympic 100m champion Marcell Jacobs.
Bednarek handed the baton to King and then Lyles powered home to secure the win, chased by De Grasse, France’s Aymeric Priam and Sota Miwa of Japan.
Teams that missed out on Paris places on day one had another chance to book their spots for the Olympics in a second round of races ahead of the finals on Sunday. Competition was fierce, with the top two in each of the three heats securing automatic qualification for the Olympics.
The 2021 World Relays winners Italy cruised to the first 4x100m Paris place of the evening, winning the first women’s heat in 42.60. It shows they mean business as despite not making it through to defend their title in Nassau, they went more than a second faster than their winning time from three years ago. Cote d’Ivoire missed out on an automatic qualifying place by just three thousands of a second on day one but multiple global medallist Marie-Josee Ta Lou-Smith was determined that her team would not be denied again. She received the baton behind Italy and Spain but stormed past Maria Isabel Perez, and almost caught Arianna De Masi, to secure the second spot in 42.63.
Jamaica will defend their Olympic title after they secured their Paris place on the second attempt. After finishing fifth in their race in the first round, they were dominant winners on day two, with world U20 200m bronze medallist Alana Reid crossing the finish line in 42.74. More than half a second back, Trinidad and Tobago’s Leah Bertrand gave chase to finish second in 43.54.
Nigeria and Switzerland were well away in the third and final heat and while Nigeria clinched victory in a close finish – 42.71 to 42.75 – they were both rewarded with Paris places.
The first of the evening’s men’s 4x100m races saw Germany triumph, as Yannick Wolf held on for the win in 38.57. But the real drama was happening behind him. Liberia were in fourth place at the final changeover but Joseph Fahnbulleh blazed the anchor leg, overtaking Brazil and then Switzerland to clinch an Olympic spot by five thousandths of a second. Liberia and Switzerland both clocked 38.65 – a national record for the former – while Brazil followed in fourth.
Ghana and Nigeria ran away with the second heat and their places for the Olympics never seemed in doubt as they clocked 38.29 and 38.57, respectively. There was more success for Africa in the third and final heat as Akani Simbine ran a storming anchor for South Africa. After that final leg timed at 8.92, he crossed the finish line with 38.08 on the clock to ensure his team will be in Paris.
They’ll be joined by Australia, who were pipped for second place by just four thousandths of a second in the first round, as the quartet went 0.04 quicker than on day one to finish runner-up in 38.46.
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