Will it be Williams (l) Clayton or Nelson (r)?
In the most anticipated clash between several of Jamaica’s rising-star female sprinters - Briana Williams, Kemba Nelson and Tina Clayton- are set to compete over 60 metres and the 50th anniversary of the Gibson/McCook Relays at the National Stadium in Kingston on Saturday.
US$10,000 in prize money has been guaranteed for the winner of the dash that will also include Jonielle Smith, Kerrica Hill, Tia Clayton and Amoi Brown in what promises to be a mouth-watering showdown of exciting young talent.
Since news emerged earlier this week about the potential starters, debate has raged over who will emerge the winner. Will it be Williams, the Tokyo 2020 relay gold-medallist, who boasts a personal best of 7.04 and who opened her season with a 7.22 clocking at the Camperdown Classic two weeks ago, or will it be Nelson, the 2021 NCAA Division 1 Indoor Champion, who is just 0.01 slower at 7.05?
Or, could it be the World U20 100m champion Tina Clayton, who has run 7.24 two weeks ago?
Noted track writer, author and pundit Hubert Lawrence, believes Williams, having already shaken off some of the rust this season, has the edge over her other celebrated rivals.
“Williams has run a 60 already and will be a little more ready for tomorrow’s race,” he opined while analyzing the line-up for Sportsmax.TV on Friday.
“Kemba hasn’t run any races this season and so is now coming back out onto the track since last year. So, it’s sort of a coming out party for her. The Claytons have run before but Williams is just about the best of them.”
Lawrence, who with Michael Grant recently co-authored 50 Days Afire, chronicling the exploits of several of Jamaica’s biggest track stars, says there are other women to look out for in that race. One, in particular, could be a potential dark horse.
“Also in that race is Kashieka Cameron, who ran a 7.3x and looked really good at the Western Relays at GC Foster a few weeks ago. She started out slowly but finished with a rush.
“When I spoke to her she told me she was training really well and even though she is slim she looked like she had a couple extra pounds of muscle compared to the girl who won the Class 1 100m for Edwin Allen at Champs in 2018. So that’s an X-factor.”
The men’s 60m dash could prove to be equaling thrilling with Jamaica’s three fastest men in 2022 -Akeem Blake, Yohan Blake and Oblique Seville – all expected to be among the starters.
The dash should also include Commonwealth Games 200m silver medallist Zharnel Hughes as well as upcoming talents Jeevan Newby and Nigel Ellis.
Lawrence believes that the men’s 60 could be somewhat open based on how well several youngsters have been performing this season.
“On the men’s side, the X-factor is Kadrian Goldson; at the same Western Relays ran 6.57, finished in a rush,” Lawrence said.
Turning his attention to the big guns, Lawrence remarked that there are questions surrounding Seville’s health, which could be a factor in how well he performs on Saturday.
“We know about Akeem Blake, young, fast. Oblique Seville is in the draw, he has not run a race since last year’s Eugene World Championships,” he said.
“If you look back, you saw him there with kinesio-tape on the back of his hamstring and that has caused Coach (Glen) Mills to hold him out of races until he was 100 per cent. Now, he is in the 60m at Gibson. That’s the watching point. Is Goldson the real thing this season and is Oblique Seville all the way back from his injuries and will he put up a performance in the 6.60’s.”
Lawrence added that young Newby could be someone to watch.
“At the Queen’s/Grace Jackson Invitational ran a 6.62 looking back at the end,” Lawrence said.
“He was second at Champs but chose not to go back to high school and has joined the Motorcade Track Club and the sounds I hear coming from them is that Newby is in terrific shape.
“So, Women’s 60, maybe Briana Williams has the edge because she a bit sharper and in the Men’s 60, is Oblique Seville ready to rock and roll in 2023 after a great 2022 season and is Newby going to continue speeding; he and Goldson are the X-factors.”
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.
Jamaica's Women advance in 4x100m relay amid the carnage for Caribbean athletes in Paris
Day 8 of Track and Field at the 2024 Paris Olympics was a day of mixed emotions for Caribbean athletes, highlighted by a standout performance from Jamaica's women in the 4x100m relay. As the morning session unfolded, the Jamaican quartet delivered a strong run to secure their place in the finals, a beacon of hope on an otherwise challenging day for the region.
The Jamaican team, comprised of Alana Reid, Kemba Nelson, Shashalee Forbes, and Tia Clayton finished third in their heat with a season-best time of 42.35 seconds, which placed them sixth overall and earned them a coveted spot in the finals.
In stark contrast, Trinidad and Tobago’s women’s relay team faced disappointment. Despite their best efforts, they finished eighth in their heat with a time of 43.99 seconds, which was not enough to advance to the finals. The team, consisting of Akilah Lewis, Sole Frederick, Sanaa Frederick, and Leah Bertrand, gave it their all but ultimately fell short.
The men’s 4x100m relay saw similar heartbreak for Jamaica. The team, made up of Ackeem Blake, Jelani Walker, Jehlani Gordon, and Kishane Thompson, ran a season-best time of 38.45 seconds but finished fourth in their heat and 11th overall, failing to make it to the finals. It was a bitter pill to swallow as they had high hopes for a strong finish.
Elsewhere, the Caribbean faced tough outcomes in other events.
In the women's shot put, Jamaica's Danniel Thomas-Dodd and Lloydricia Cameron, along with Trinidad & Tobago's Portious Warren, did not advance past the qualification round. Thomas-Dodd threw 18.12m, Cameron achieved a season-best of 18.02m, and Warren managed 17.22m. Their efforts were valiant but fell short of the 19.15m qualification standard, ending their Olympic journeys in this event.
The women's 100m hurdles also saw Caribbean athletes falling short. Emelia Chatfield of Haiti and Denisha Cartwright of the Bahamas competed fiercely but did not make it past the repechage round. Chatfield finished sixth in her heat with a time of 13.24 seconds, while Cartwright was seventh, clocking 13.45 seconds. Despite their strong performances, they were unable to advance to the semifinals.
In the men's 800m, St Vincent and the Grenadines' Handal Roban, Jamaica’s Navasky Anderson, and Dominica’s Dennick Luke all faced similar fates in the repechage round. Roban finished fourth with a time of 1:45.80, Anderson fifth in his heat with 1:46.01, and Luke set a national record of 1:46.81 but finished sixth in his heat. None of these times were sufficient to move on to the semifinals, marking the end of their Olympic campaigns in this event.
Jamaica’s Williams, T&T’s Richards secure wins at Spitzen Leichtathletik in Luzern
Jamaica’s Stacey-Ann Williams and Trinidad & Tobago’s Jereem Richards were the only Caribbean winners at Tuesday’s Spitzen Leichtathletik Meet in Luzern, Switzerland.
Williams turned back the challenge of Dutchwoman Lisanne de Witte and Switzerland’s Annina Fahr to win in 50.58, her second fastest time this season, trailing behind her 50.56 to finish second at Jamaica’s National Championships in June.
De Witte and Fahr’s times in second and third were 51.99 and 52.08, respectively.
Richards, the 2017 World Championship bronze medallist and two-time Commonwealth Champion, all in the 200m, won the half-lap event on Tuesday in 20.19 ahead of the Zimbabwean pair Makanakaishe Charamba (20.42) and Tapiwanashe Makarawu (20.48).
The 30-year-old Trinidadian will also compete in the 400m in Paris. He won gold in the distance at the World Indoor Championships in 2022.
Another Jamaican Olympian, Lanae-Tava Thomas, was narrowly beaten by the Ivory Coast’s Jessika Gbai in the 200m.
Gbai’s winning time of 22.57 just beat out Thomas’s 22.60 while Switzerland’s Mujinga Kambundji was just behind in third in 22.61.
Kemba Nelson ran 11.21 to finish third overall in the women’s 100m behind New Zealand’s Zoe Hobbs (11.17) and Kambundji (11.20).
Kishane Thompson storms to world-leading 9.77 while Jackson claims third consecutive Women’s 100m title at JAAA National Senior Championships
Shericka Jackson claimed her third consecutive national 100m title on day two of the JAAA National Senior and Junior Championships at the National Stadium in Kingston on Friday.
The two-time World 200m champion produced a season’s best 10.84 to take top spot ahead of 19-year-old Tia Clayton who ran 10.90 to finish second after running a personal best 10.86 to get to the final.
Two-time Olympic champion Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce booked a spot at her fifth Olympic Games with 10.94 in third.
The top six was rounded out by Shashalee Forbes (11.04), Kemba Nelson (11.14) and Alana Reid (11.14).
“I’m feeling good. I just wanted to qualify and I did so I’m okay,” Jackson told the media after her race.
“I only ran one 100m before these championships and my 200m haven’t been the best but you just have to trust the process and I’m here today,” she added.
On the Men’s side, Kishane Thompson delivered on the promise he showed in both the heats on Thursday and the semi-finals earlier on Friday with a personal best and world leading 9.77 to win his maiden national 100m title.
Oblique Seville ran 9.82 to take second while Ackeem Blake ran a season’s best 9.92 in third.
Bryan Levell (10.04), Jelani Walker (10.04) and Jehlani Gordon (10.07) rounded out the top six in the final.
In the Under-20 100m finals, Edwin Allen’s Theianna-Lee Terrelonge ran a brilliant personal best 11.13 to win the girls final ahead of Muschett High’s Shanoya Douglas (11.28) and Lacovia’s Sabrina Dockery (11.29).
The boys equivalent was won by Gary Card of Wolmer’s Boys in a brilliant personal best of 10.07, the second fastest time ever by a Jamaican junior.
Herbert Morrison Technical’s Deandre Daley ran 10.16 for second while Kingston College’s Nyrone Wade was third in 10.36.
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