Trinidad and Tobago's Head coach Brian Haynes has named the trio of Rio Cardines, Derrel Garcia and Larry Noel among seven overseas players in his young Soca Warriors squad for their upcoming Concacaf Men's Under-20 Championship assignment.
The twin island republic will host Group D, which includes Canada, Dominica and St Vincent and the Grenadines, at the Hasely Crawford Stadium, Mucurapo. They will open against St Vincent and the Grenadines next Friday, before tackling Dominica on February 25, and Canada on February 27.
Haynes's side is now in the final phase of their preparations following two warm-up fixtures against Jamaica, and one against their senior Soca Warriors counterparts. They first defeated Jamaica 3-2, but lost the second contest 1-3, and that was followed by a 1-2 defeat to Angus Eve's senior outfit.
Despite those results, Haynes in a recent interview, expressed pleasure with his team's display for the most part.
“We need to have some consistency. We have to work on being much more effective on offence. I think we do a good job getting the ball from the back to the midfield and to the top of the 18-yard (box), but the final product has to become better,” Haynes reasoned.
“All we have to do is keep working hard no matter what happens. We concentrated for the most part...I am thankful it is happening now and not in the tournament. While we didn’t win the game, the experience they got here is something you cannot get in practice,” he added.
The inclusion of the seven overseas-based players meant the tactician was impressed by their rendition, as he initially declared that their selection would be dependent on the quality they could add to his team.
“This (local) group here has made me proud, and I am saying I love it. We have good players coming from overseas, but we have good soccer players here in Trinidad, and if the guys that are coming in are not challenging these guys, this is what I am going with,” Haynes said prior to finalizing his squad.
Only the group winners will progress to the next phase of the Concacaf Under-20 tournament to join the top teams –United States, Honduras, Mexico, Panama, Costa Rica, and the Dominican Republic –ranked in that order.
Jamaica's national 400m champion, Sean Bailey, is celebrating a significant personal milestone as he has announced his engagement to long-time girlfriend Denae McFarlane. Following a proposal in a romantic setting on Valentine's Day, the 26-year-old athlete shared the joyous news via Instagram, declaring, "She said yes!" The engagement comes at a pivotal moment in Bailey's career as he prepares to secure a spot on Jamaica's team for the upcoming Olympic Games in Paris this summer.
Bailey, the younger brother of Jamaican sprint icon Veronica Campbell-Brown, has steadily risen among the world's elite 400m runners. In 2023, he solidified his status with notable achievements, including a personal best of 44.43 at the Drake Relays. His remarkable victory over Olympic gold medalist Kirani James highlighted his prowess and set the stage for a successful season.
The two-time national champion continued his stellar performance by claiming his second national title in July, clocking an impressive 44.48 to fend off a fast-finishing Antonio Watson, the eventual world champion. Despite injury setbacks at the World Athletic Championships in Budapest, where he finished fifth in the final won by Watson, Bailey signed a professional contract with Adidas.
As Bailey focuses on his Olympic preparations, his fiancée McFarlane, a former standout from Edwin Allen High School, has also made a mark in the world of athletics. Currently pursuing academic studies as a senior at the University of Texas El Paso (UTEP), McFarlane has showcased her talents on the track.
While McFarlane may not have reached the heights achieved by her fiancé, she has proven herself as a quality athlete. Hailing from the parish of Clarendon, McFarlane has represented her university with distinction, earning recognition such as the 2023 All-Conference USA Second Team in the 100m Outdoors, All-Conference USA Second Team in the 4x100m Outdoors, and 2023 All-Conference USA Third Team in the 60m Indoors.
Footballers who are the victims of discrimination could have the opportunity to meet with the alleged perpetrator as part of a “first of its kind” restorative policy being launched by Major League Soccer and its players.
There are more eyes on football in the United States and Canada than ever before, thanks in no small part to Lionel Messi’s blockbuster move to Inter Miami last summer.
Ever-evolving MLS and the Major League Soccer Players Association have now launched a new jointly aligned anti-discrimination policy ahead of next week’s 2024 season kick-off.
The league says the policy “is the first of its kind in professional sports in that it is centred on restorative practices, prioritising education, prevention, training, and cultural awareness”.
Sola Winley, MLS’ chief engagement and inclusion officer, said: “To bring something like this to bear is no small task.
“It takes not just a lot of smart minds, but a lot of big hearts to think outside of the box, to build a culture that’s rooted in dignity and respect.
“And to build a culture that can be a leader not just in the soccer and football landscape around the world, but in the sports landscape and beyond.”
Eric Harrington, MLSPA general counsel, said: “By embracing culturally inclusive training to prevent discrimination and restorative practices to remedy it when it occurs, we can prevent discrimination and support players who are harmed by it while providing a pathway of healing for everyone.”
MLS, the MLSPA and non-profit Black Players for Change worked together on the development of the policy and a new intercultural awareness training programme, which is required for all players and staff.
New England Revolution goalkeeper and Black Players for Change president Earl Edwards Jr said: “All players deserve to play this game free of discrimination and to have our cultures welcomed, included and respected.
“This innovative policy is a significant step in building a more inclusive game for all of us and for setting an example for all of sports.”
Under the new policy, restorative plans include the option for an alleged offender to make amends with those harmed by their conduct.
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Furthermore, those that accept responsibility and partake in a restorative plan will face less severe discipline from the league than if they deny committing the act and are subsequently found to be untruthful or misleading.
“The players have an option to participate if they want to,” Winley added. “We’re not forcing that.
“Our hope is that there’s pathways to the players coming together, to apologise, for the players to hear the work that others have went through. We create that space and that environment for that to happen.”
‘Playing As One’ workshops ran during pre-season, with MLS greats involved in helping to, among other things, explain banned terms and develop cultural awareness in a league with 80-plus nationalities.
“What we’ve decided is that the best way for us to do that is to build bridges of understanding, have conversations that are based on curiosity,” Winley said.
“To give grace to people when they make mistakes but, to be clear, we are moving from a position of strength and not from a position of weakness. And to be compassionate doesn’t mean that you’re weak.
“It’s easy just to suspend people. The hard work is in the rehabilitation and reintegrating, and we have made a commitment to do the hard work.
“That might not always be preferred in a court of public opinion, but if we’re true to our values and if we’re true to the goals that we have, then we feel good about the process and feel very good about what the outcome of this will be.”
Cheltenham Festival-winning jockey Jamie Moore has announced his retirement from the saddle on medical advice following a fall last year.
Moore, 39, is the son of trainer Gary and the brother of Josh, Ryan and Hayley – all of whom are well-known faces in the racing industry.
After starting out in 2001, Moore was the champion conditional rider at the end of the 2003-04 season when based in Somerset with Martin Pipe, for whom he rode his first significant winners in graded events.
Naturally much of his riding was on behalf of his father and it was the popular chestnut Sire De Grugy who became the horse of a lifetime for both when winning the Queen Mother Champion Chase at Cheltenham in 2014 – one of 17 victories, with Moore in the saddle each time.
Moore rode 968 winners across his career and took the 2014 Scottish Grand National on Al Co for trainer Peter Bowen in the same season that Sire De Grugy was on the Grade One-winning streak that saw him named British Jumps Horse of the Year.
A heavy fall at Lingfield in late November last year left the rider with a fractured vertebra as well as broken ribs and a broken nose, with doctors advising him not return to the saddle as a result of the injuries he sustained.
In a statement issued via the Professional Jockeys Association, he said: “It is with huge regret that, following my last fall in November 2023, I will not be returning to race riding.
“After being checked by top neurologists and spinal specialists, and taking advice from Dr Jerry Hill and the doctors who’ve seen me the most in my career – Dr Rizwan Ghani and Dr Lucy Free – I have been medically advised not to race ride again.
“I would like to thank everyone who has stuck by me and supported me throughout my 22-year career. Obviously I have been very lucky to have such a good trainer in my father Gary, who’s always supported me, along with his brilliant, faithful owners. My mother Jayne and my wife Lucie have also always been there for me.
“Back to the start and my first boss, Mr Pipe, who helped me become champion conditional. To every other trainer and every owner I’ve ridden for; my agent Dave Roberts; my sponsors; all the brilliant stable staff and the PJA and the Injured Jockeys Fund, who have always been so supportive.
“Finally, to the best place you could wish to work – the weighing room. To all the physios, tea boys and ladies, nurses and weighing room staff who have made each day of going to work much more enjoyable.
“And to all the brilliant jockeys and valets past and present who I’ve made lifelong friends with. I will hugely miss the weighing room. There have been some ups and plenty of downs but everyone is always there for you. You’ve all been top class.
“It’s impossible to put into words how thankful I am to each and every one of you.”
Dale Gibson, executive director of the PJA, added: “Jamie unfortunately suffered more than his fair share of long-term injuries and missed the equivalent of four years race riding during his career as a result, but his remarkable fortitude and appetite for race riding shone like a beacon throughout his career.
“Jamie was and will remain universally popular within the weighing room and wider racing industry. His down to earth, no-nonsense approach alongside his genuine love of the horse (should) be wholeheartedly applauded.
“He also served his colleagues and the PJA exceptionally well as southern-based National Hunt safety officer since December 2019, as well as being a dependable source for general advice to the PJA and younger jockeys both on and off the racecourse.
“Jamie has been a pleasure to represent and will be sorely missed in the weighing room. We wish him, his wife Lucie and their family all the very best and we look forward to seeing him on a racecourse soon in his second career.”
Moore’s father expects his son to become an even more integral part of the family stable and said to Racing TV: “I’m very proud of him, you’re proud of your children anyway, aren’t you? But he’s done really, really.
“He was champion conditional one year, thanks to Martin Pipe. He always wanted to do it from the age of 14 and he’s done remarkably well.
“It’s a shame he didn’t quite make the thousand (winners), but at least he’s come out in one piece.”
Of Sire De Grugy the trainer added: “He was just an unbelievable horse who was Jamie’s best mate really, it wasn’t just the Champion Chase, it was the Celebration here (at Sandown) and the Clarence House. What he did that season was unbelievable.
“I can’t go on forever and him and Josh work very well together. He was in Newmarket last week doing his (training) modules so something will happen in the new future hopefully.”
Fergal O’Brien’s Springtime Promise continued on an upward trajectory with an impressive victory in the Jane Seymour Mares’ Novices’ Hurdle at Sandown.
An experienced point-to-pointer with two victories in that discipline for Gary McGill on her CV, the bay changed hands to join O’Brien ahead of the current season.
She made her debut for new connections with a two-length win at Huntingdon in January before going on to land another novice event at Sedgefield later the same month.
At Sandown she stepped steeply up to Grade Two company for the Weatherbys Cheltenham Festival Betting Guide-sponsored Jane Seymour, starting at 11-1 under regular jockey Connor Brace.
In a field of seven she ran a pleasing race and jumped neatly throughout to pull away on the approach to the line and secure a three-length victory, extending her winning streak to five consecutive races both under rules and otherwise.
“It was a very good run, her form really stacked up from Huntingdon,” O’Brien said.
“It was hard work for her at Sedgefield, but Connor always thought she’d be better in a better run race.
“She jumped and travelled really well. She didn’t pull, she was a bit too keen in her other races, but today was perfect for her and she saw it out very well – we’re over the moon with her.
“She’s very straightforward, very honest, she’s a good ride at home and she’s very easy to do so she’s got loads of potential.”
Springtime Promise is entered for the Ryanair Mares’ Novices’ Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival and was cut from 50-1 to 33-1 with Betfair for that race, which has been won for the past two years by winners of the Jane Seymour.
O’Brien added: “I’m delighted for the Keeping The Dream Alive syndicate, we’ll have a look and see what the ground comes up like at Cheltenham and see where we can go next.”
Elsewhere on the card Dan Skelton’s Etalon caught the eye in the Team Forces “Ubique” Handicap Chase, a race he won under Harry Skelton by nine lengths as the 4-6 favourite.
The success is the latest instalment in the gelding’s chasing career, which started with a win on debut at Newbury and continued when he was triumphant in a Warwick novice in January.
Skelton said: “We didn’t really have a hold-up in the autumn, but he was a bit slow to come to hand. He’s got his act together now and was always going to be a chaser and saw it out well today.
“I do think for now he is a two-miler and on balance he’s going to miss Cheltenham and go to Aintree, we will run him in the Grade One novice chase there (Maghull Novices’ Chase).
“We would like to aim high and see if we can create something and with the greatest of respect, if he can’t win a Grade One he will get another chance to run in the Grand Annual in the future.”
The Castel Royal Artillery Gold Cup went the way of Major Will Kellard, who rode Jamie Snowden’s Farceur Du Large to a six-and-a-half-length victory as the 13-8 favourite.
The winning horse was one of a trio in contention over the last fence, where Fil D’Ariane fell and hampered Broken Halo, leaving the grey to gallop home and add this prize to his Grand Military Gold Cup title.
Search For Glory collected his third win of the season when taking the Surehaul Mercedes-Benz Novice Hurdle at Clonmel.
The Gordon Elliott-trained gelding was already a Grade Three winner coming into the race having taken the Singletons Supervalu Stayers Novice Hurdle at Cork in December.
He was not the favourite for this Grade Three, however, and started at 5-4 under Jack Kennedy as Eddie and Patrick Harty’s Harvard Guy was at the head of the market at 8-11 in a field of three.
The early stages of the race were run at a canter and the contest eventually developed into a sprint, with Search For Glory easily able to pull away and triumph by four and a quarter lengths after showing some reluctance when making the running.
“He actually did it well in the end and just didn’t like being in front,” Kennedy said.
“Once he got to the top of the hill he didn’t mind coming back around this way, but going away from the bend had been tricky.
“I wouldn’t even say he is better going left-handed, he just didn’t enjoy making the running.
“It worked out OK as he was always going to pick up and he actually showed more gears today than he ever did.”
Omari Eastmond is gearing up for an energetic campaign to unseat Randy Harris in the Barbados Football Association (BFA) presidential race and reshape the sport’s leadership on the island.
Eastmond, a former goalkeeper for the Bajan Tridents, is the lone contender against Harris, who has been at the helm since 2012, and he has been actively seeking support from affiliated clubs and prominent figures in the sport, since declaring his candidacy for the April 7 election.
Eastmond plans to launch a series of events using various communication platforms to connect with the football community and key stakeholders.
“I’ve received tremendous backing, although not all of it is public. Many people have reached out to me,” Eastmond told Barbados Today.
“It’s crucial to convey my message because we’re in dire need of change. I can’t identify with any plans for the development of football in Barbados. We’re not in a good place at the moment. There was a time when Barbados’ rivals were Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, Haiti and Cuba; now even Montserrat beating us. This can’t be the direction anyone would want to see football in Barbados,” he added, as the Tridents were recently relegated to League C of the Concacaf Nations League.
Eastmond believes that his candidacy represents a call for transformative leadership within the BFA, centred on strategic planning, financial accountability, and grassroots development, with the ultimate aim of revitalizing Barbadian football on both national and international stages.
As such, he intends to share his vision with football stakeholders leading up to the election, as he reaffirmed his commitment to fostering improved communication between clubs and ensuring transparency in the allocation of FIFA funds.
Drawing comparisons with successful football programmes in neighbouring Caribbean nations, Eastmond stressed the importance of prudent financial management and strategic planning.
“We just need to manage our money properly, and we’re not seeking advice from persons who are smart enough to tell the BFA how the money is best spent,” Eastmond noted.
Paul Nicholls is relishing the prospect of taking on Cheltenham Gold Cup fancy L’Homme Presse with course regular Pic D’Orhy in the Betfair Ascot Chase.
The nine-year-old Grade One winner won the Noel Novices’ Chase at the Berkshire track in 2021 and was also the beneficiary of Shishkin refusing to start when claiming the 1965 Chase earlier in the season.
Second to a resurgent Shishkin in this Grade One event 12 months ago, Pic D’Orhy will now attempt to deal a blow to the Cheltenham Festival ambitions of not only L’Homme Presse, but also Ahoy Senor, who along with Dan Skelton’s Sail Away makes up the select quartet heading to post.
The champion trainer is full of respect for Venetia Williams’ Gold Cup hopeful and the way he has returned him from a long setback. But Nicholls believes there is still enough in Pic D’Orhy’s favour to be confident of a bold bid.
“It’s a good race with L’Homme Presse in the race and it will be interesting,” said Nicholls.
“He is a good horse and ran very well the other day at Lingfield off the back of a setback and they will be hoping he will carry on forward again. He’s a smart horse.
“However, he did only beat Protektorat and Protektorat couldn’t beat Hitman the other day in the Denman Chase so you could look at the form and think maybe he was flattered a bit at Lingfield.”
He went on: “It was an impressive performance from Venetia to get him back fit and well first time out and he did look very good, so we just have to hope we can find the chink in his armour.
“L’Homme Presse is obviously a smart horse and they are on the way to the Gold Cup. We’re doing a different route, but hopefully Pic D’Orhy will run a good race and hopefully he will run very well.”
Helping fuel Nicholls’ positivity is Pic D’Orhy’s performances this term, in particular his narrow second in the Silviniaco Conti Chase at Kempton, where he bumped into on-song Irish raider Banbridge.
The Ditcheat handler regards that Kempton display as one of his charge’s best-ever performances and he will now head to Ascot bidding to give Nicholls a record fifth win in a race he has won with the likes of Kauto Star and Cyrname in the past.
“It’s a good race and good horses win it and Pic D’Orhy is right up with those,” said Nicholls when comparing Pic D’Orhy to his previous champions.
“It would be nice to win it again, of course it would, and it would set him on his way to Aintree.
“He ran at Kempton sort of 35/36 days ago which is the same as last year and since then everything has gone good and he worked this morning and I was very happy with him.
“He’s produced two good runs (this season), he won at Ascot first time when he probably wasn’t at his best then and I would say it was nearly a career best last time giving nearly 3lb to Banbridge – that was a good run. He’s in good form and always runs to a really consistent level.”
Pic D’Orhy runs in the colours of one of Nicholls’ biggest backers, owner Johnny de la Hay, who as well as enjoying a plethora of proven stars, saw one of his brightest new recruits Teeshan excel on rules debut at Exeter recently.
The wide-margin point winner soared seven-lengths clear of the opposition, with that taking performance enough to see him cut to single-figure odds for the Champion Bumper with most firms, currently as low as 5-1 with Boylesports.
However, Nicholls is yet to commit to the Cheltenham Festival, and although Teeshan is poised to be given an entry for Prestbury Park, his trainer would have no issue with waiting an extra month for Aintree.
He said: “He won nicely, what sort of race it was I don’t know, but he cantered round and won nicely.
“I’ve won two other bumpers there this year season with Quebecois and Joyau Allen and I would argue they were just as impressive as he was.
“He had quite a reputation because he won his Irish point-to-point very well, but he couldn’t have made a better start than what he did the other day and I was very happy with him.”
Nicholls went on: “He will have an entry (for Cheltenham) and we ran Captain Teague in it last year. We will just see how he is.
“He took time to acclimatise and come right from when he came over from Ireland in the autumn and I just want to make sure he’s all right. If he doesn’t go to Cheltenham he will undoubtedly go to Aintree.”
Paul Nicholls praised the generosity of the racing community after the fundraising page set up in memory of Keagan Kirkby reached a figure in excess of £54,000.
Kirkby, 25, a point-to-point rider and popular member of Nicholls’ Ditcheat team, tragically died in an accident while riding at Charing point-to-point in Kent on February 4.
A JustGiving page was set up to help raise funds for Kirkby’s funeral and a memorial in his name, with an initial target of £5,000.
Thanks to the overwhelming support of those inside the racing industry and the wider racing public, the target has been widely exceeded, with whatever funds remain after the funeral set to be donated to charity.
“There is over £54,000 raised now for Keagan, which shows what high esteem he was held in,” said Nicholls.
“It shows how racing can pull together and everybody has supported it from all walks of life and it is just fantastic. It is fantastic what racing has done and it helps us get through what has been a difficult time.
“We can now give him a great send-off and I think his mum’s intention is that any money left over will go to any charities he felt close to.”
One significant donation came from Ditcheat owner Michael Geoghegan, who contributed the prize-money from his horse Fire Flyer’s recent Taunton success to the fund.
Fire Flyer was a horse ridden by Kirkby on a daily basis on the gallops, and the champion trainer pointed to that as a special moment as his team attempt to navigate a difficult time.
“It’s obviously a tragic time, but all the winners help in this situation, I think especially when Fire Flyer won at Taunton,” continued Nicholls.
“Keagan rode that horse every single day and for him to win down there was very poignant. It was a tribute to Keegan, and the whole team were on a high because that horse won for him really. Winners count and it makes life just a little bit easier.”
The Jamaica Football Federation (JFF) election is set to face another delay, as the country’s governing football body has been served a notice of appeal filed on behalf of Patricia Garel as President of Beach Soccer Jamaica.
This follows a recent Supreme Court ruling that denied an application for the continuation of the temporary injunction, which initially barred the elections from proceeding on January 14.
That application was denied on the basis that the applicants, Garel and Beach Soccer Jamaica, did not establish that they are an affiliate or member of the JFF. As a result, the court ruled that there was no serious issue to be tried by the court.
However, instead of heading to an Elective Congress, the parties are headed back to court as Garel, whose initially application in the Supreme Court sought an order to compel the JFF to allow Beach Soccer to participate in the election of officers as the entity representing beach football in Jamaica, has appealed against the recent ruling.
Still, the JFF in a release says it remains confident in securing a favorable decision on the appeal.
“The JFF is on course to set a new date for Elective Congress, in order to ensure that the members are not disenfranchised,” the JFF statement noted.
With this latest move said to be in violation of the JFF Constitution and the FIFA Statutes, incumbent Michael Ricketts, who has been at the helm since 2017, expressed his discontent with the court action.
Ricketts stated that he is “opposed to the action, especially as it goes against the provisions of the JFF Constitution and the FIFA Statutes and is a deliberate attempt to deny the legitimate members a right to exercise their vote for the development of football in Jamaica and for Jamaicans.”
Meanwhile, vice-president Raymond Anderson, who is challenging Ricketts for the post, declined to comment on the matter.
Cheltenham Festival-winning jockey Jamie Moore has announced his retirement from the saddle on medical advice following a fall last year.
Moore is the son of trainer Gary and the brother of Josh, Ryan and Hayley – all of whom are well-known faces in the racing industry.
After starting out in 2001, Moore was the champion conditional rider at the end of the 2003-04 season when based in Somerset with Martin Pipe, for whom he rode his first significant winners in graded events.
Naturally much of his riding was on behalf of his father and it was the popular chestnut Sire De Grugy who became the horse of a lifetime for both when winning the Queen Mother Champion Chase at Cheltenham in 2014 – one of 17 victories, with Moore in the saddle each time.
Moore rode 968 winners across his career and took the 2014 Scottish Grand National on Al Co for trainer Peter Bowen in the same season that Sire De Grugy was on the Grade One-winning streak that saw him named British Jumps Horse of the Year.
A heavy fall at Lingfield in late November last year left the rider with a fractured vertebra as well as broken ribs and a broken nose, with doctors advising him not return to the saddle as a result of the injuries he sustained.
In a statement issued via the Professional Jockeys Association, he said: “It is with huge regret that, following my last fall in November 2023, I will not be returning to race riding.
“After being checked by top neurologists and spinal specialists, and taking advice from Dr Jerry Hill and the doctors who’ve seen me the most in my career – Dr Rizwan Ghani and Dr Lucy Free – I have been medically advised not to race ride again.
“I would like to thank everyone who has stuck by me and supported me throughout my 22-year career. Obviously I have been very lucky to have such a good trainer in my father Gary, who’s always supported me, along with his brilliant, faithful owners. My mother Jayne and my wife Lucie have also always been there for me.
“Back to the start and my first boss, Mr Pipe, who helped me become champion conditional. To every other trainer and every owner I’ve ridden for; my agent Dave Roberts; my sponsors; all the brilliant stable staff and the PJA and the Injured Jockeys Fund, who have always been so supportive.
“Finally, to the best place you could wish to work – the weighing room. To all the physios, tea boys and ladies, nurses and weighing room staff who have made each day of going to work much more enjoyable.
“And to all the brilliant jockeys and valets past and present who I’ve made lifelong friends with. I will hugely miss the weighing room. There have been some ups and plenty of downs but everyone is always there for you. You’ve all been top class.
“It’s impossible to put into words how thankful I am to each and every one of you.”
Dale Gibson, executive director of the PJA, added: “Jamie unfortunately suffered more than his fair share of long-term injuries and missed the equivalent of four years race riding during his career as a result, but his remarkable fortitude and appetite for race riding shone like a beacon throughout his career.
“Jamie was and will remain universally popular within the weighing room and wider racing industry. His down to earth, no-nonsense approach alongside his genuine love of the horse (should) be wholeheartedly applauded.
“He also served his colleagues and the PJA exceptionally well as southern-based National Hunt safety officer since December 2019, as well as being (a_ dependable source for general advice to the PJA and younger jockeys both on and off the racecourse.
“Jamie has been a pleasure to represent and will be sorely missed in the weighing room. We wish him, his wife Lucie and their family all the very best and we look forward to seeing him on a racecourse soon in his second career.”
In a triumphant display of excellence at the 2024 CIAA Indoor Track & Field Championships at the JDL Fast Track, Fayetteville State University's Inez Turner and Claflin University's Melvin Watts emerged as the CIAA Women's Coach of the Year and Men's Coach of the Year, respectively.
The coaches led their teams to repeat victories, with Fayetteville State's women and Claflin's men securing another championship title.
Turner, the iconic Jamaican Olympian and head coach of Fayetteville State University's Women's Track and Field team, expressed her gratitude on Facebook for winning yet another championship. She shared, "It is so very awesome to know that one's labor is not in vain. I am happy that through it all, the victory is won. This marks our 14th championship since my assignment at Fayetteville State University back in the fall of 2017. I am indeed grateful and thankful to our Lord and Savior who has ordained His abundant blessings."
The Fayetteville State University Women's team, also known as the Lady Broncos, clinched their fourth championship in five seasons, tallying 138 points.
Their exceptional performances were highlighted by M'Smyra Seward, named Women's Field Athlete of the Year, who triumphed in the long jump event with a distance of 5.89 meters. Irene Jeptoo and Nia Gibson secured victories in the 1-mile and 3,000 meters, respectively, contributing significantly to the team's success. Winston-Salem State's Hayleigh Bryant earned Women's Track Athlete of the Year honors after winning the 400 meters and the 200 meters.
On the men's side, Claflin University maintained their dominance, securing their second consecutive championship with 131 points. Key contributors included Jonathan Flemister, who won the 200-meter dash, and Chander Anderson, claiming victory in the 400 meters. Zion Murry repeated as the 800-meter champion. Saint Augustine’s Terrell Robinson was named Men's Track Athlete of the Year, showcasing his prowess in the 60-meter event.
The championship victories solidify Turner and Watts' reputations as exceptional coaches, guiding their teams to sustained success. The achievements of the athletes and coaches reflect the dedication, perseverance, and championship mindset that define the spirit of these track and field programs.
Jamie Snowden’s You Wear It Well will head for the relocated Ashton Mares’ Hurdle at Haydock on Saturday after a campaign disrupted by adverse weather.
The seven-year-old was the winner of the Jack De Bromhead Mares’ Novices’ Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival last season and made a good start to this term when taking the Listed bet365 Mares’ Hurdle at Wetherby on debut.
In Grade One company she was third home in the Fighting Fifth when it was relocated to Sandown, the first of several occasions when her plans were interrupted by the ramifications of the British weather in winter.
Outings to Sandown, Lingfield and Ascot were all scuppered due to conditions, and the Warwick meeting that originally included the Ashton Mares’ Hurdle was also abandoned last weekend.
Haydock will now host that contest this weekend, with the two-mile-three-furlong Listed event attracting five runners.
Snowden said: “She’s in great order, she’s done some work on the grass and she’ll hopefully be heading to Haydock on Saturday.
“She was meant to go to Sandown, that was cancelled, she was meant to go to Lingfield, that was cancelled, she was meant to go to Ascot, that was cancelled, she was meant to go to Warwick and that was cancelled!
“Finally we’re going to be able to get the run, let’s hope Haydock survives the weather as well.”
You Wear It Well holds an entry for the Close Brothers Mares’ Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival and the race remains the likely target, though Snowden may also give her an entry in the Coral Cup.
He said: “As ever each race determines the next race, that’s the nature of racing, but the Mares’ Hurdle is probably the obvious race to go for, though I might give her an entry in the Coral Cup as well.”
Ferny Hollow will not make his long-awaited return to action in the Red Mills Chase at Gowran on Saturday due to the going.
The Willie Mullins-trained gelding was at one stage amongst the most exciting horses in training, winning the Champion Bumper at Cheltenham by two and half lengths in 2020.
He ran just the once over hurdles, winning a maiden ahead of Bob Olinger, and over a year later he returned to the track to start his chasing career in December 2021.
His debut over fences was a four-length Punchestown victory, after which he landed the Grade One Racing Post Novice Chase at Leopardstown before injury intervened.
Now a nine-year-old, Ferny Hollow was entered to make his comeback at the weekend – some 783 days after his last start.
The ground at Gowran is heavy, however, and connections have therefore decided this weekend will not be right opportunity to reintroduce the horse to the racecourse.
Chris Richardson, managing director of owners Cheveley Park Stud, said: “He’s not running because of the ground.
“I know that Willie was hoping to run him but obviously he’s been off a while, he has had a lot of issues over the last year or two.
“We’re just creeping back towards a run so we’ll see what happens, but at this point in time it’s not quite going to happen.”
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