Keyshawn Strachan advanced to his maiden NCAA Division 1 Outdoor Championships after throwing 74.63m at the NCAA East Regional on Wednesday.
Bahamian Auburn University Tigers sophomore Keyshawn Strachan produced a best throw of 74.63m in the men’s javelin competition of the NCAA Division I East Preliminary Round competition at the University of Kentucky Track & Field Complex in Lexington, Kentucky, on Wednesday.
With the throw, the CARIFTA Under-20 record holder advanced to the NCAA Division 1 Outdoor Track and Field Championships for the first time.
The 20-year-old finished third in the Wednesday’s competition, with all three of his throws (70.54m, 71.37m, 74.63m) surpassing 70m.
His personal best and Bahamian national record 84.27m was done at the Clyde Littlefield Texas Relays in 2023 at the Mike A. Myers Stadium.
Wanya McCoy, a junior for the University of Florida Gators, moved on to the quarterfinals of the men’s 100 and 200m, winning his heats in 10.29 seconds and 20.34 seconds respectively.
He finished tied with the sixth fastest time going into the quarters in both events, and will have to finish among the top 12 to move on to the NCAA Championships.
McCoy was a runner-up in both the 100m and 200m at the SEC Outdoor Championships in Gainesville earlier this month.
Also advancing in the 100m were Caymanian two-time Carifta U-20 gold medallist Davonte Howell of Tennessee (10.35), Jamaica’s Jehlani Gordon of Georgia (10.41) and T&T’s Omari Lewis on Liberty (10.39).
Jamaican Florida State Seminoles sophomore Jordan Turner also advanced to the NCAA Championships after jumping 7.74m to finish fourth in the men’s long jump.
American Championship Conference (ACC) outdoor shot-put champion Courtney Lawrence of Clemson also booked his spot at the NCAA Championships with a throw of 19.61m to finish sixth.
Jamaican LSU sophomore, Jahiem Stern, ran 13.38 to lead all qualifiers to the quarterfinals in the men’s sprint hurdles set for Friday.
Clemson senior and ACC Outdoor champion Tarees Rhoden made it through to the quarterfinals in the men’s 800m with 1:47.89 to win his preliminary.
Jamaica’s Jevaughn Powell of Florida (45.85), D’Andre Anderson of Clemson (45.87), Reheem Hayles of Florida (45.99) made it through to the quarters in the men’s 400m.
The men’s 400m hurdles saw Bajan Tennessee senior Rasheeme Griffith (50.40) and Jamaican South Florida sophomore Devontie Archer (51.13) make progress.
The 2024 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships is set for June 5-8 at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon.
Julien Alfred reveals she almost withdrew from Olympics due to pressure
Olympic champion Julien Alfred, who rose to global fame this summer by winning gold in the 100 metres at the Paris Olympic Games, has revealed in an interview with Sky Sports that she nearly withdrew from the Games due to the intense pressure she felt after a standout performance earlier in the year. The 23-year-old, who clocked an impressive 10.72 seconds to claim her title as the world's fastest woman, shared her journey through the mental and physical challenges she faced leading up to her historic win.
Reflecting on her victory at the Stade de France, Alfred said, “I remember screaming so loud and bursting into tears just knowing all my hard work and sacrifice has paid off and knowing how hard it was to get to that point in my career. All I could do was just cry.”
However, after winning gold in the 60m at the World Indoor Championships in Glasgow earlier this year, Alfred admitted she felt overwhelming pressure to continue delivering exceptional performances. “I put so much pressure on myself after the World Indoors that I have to deliver every single time,” she said. “My coach took me off the track, took me out of competition so I can just focus on my mental health and my physical health as well.”
The expectation to perform at her peak weighed heavily on Alfred, especially as she took on the role of a trailblazer for St. Lucia. “That was such a hard time for me where I felt like there’s no way I’m going to continue, there’s no way I feel like I have the mental capacity to go to the line again and to represent my country,” she admitted. “Suddenly I got more attention, especially after winning the World Indoors, that I was not used to. I'm just so used to doing well and going back to my shell where I just work on the little things and then go back on the line whenever I have to again.”
Despite the struggle, Alfred overcame the pressure, becoming not only St. Lucia’s first Olympic gold medalist but also securing silver in the 200m three days later, marking her country’s first two Olympic medals. Known affectionately as “Ju Ju” back home, Alfred returned to the track determined to make her nation proud, sharing the podium with American stars Sha’carri Richardson and Melissa Jefferson.
During her time in the UK as St. Lucia's Tourism Ambassador, Alfred has embraced her role as a national icon. She represented her country at the World Tourism Market and visited schools to inspire young students, encouraging the next generation to pursue their dreams.
World Championship medallist Rushell Clayton signs with Grand Slam Track
Jamaica’s Rushell Clayton will get an opportunity to compete against the fastest women in the world consistently in the inaugural Grand Slam Track league next season.
Clayton was announced on Tuesday alongside fellow 400m hurdlers Shamier Little and Jasmine Jones, both from the USA, as one of the latest signees to Michael Johnson’s revolutionary new venture.
Clayton ran personal bests of 51.81 for 400m and 52.51 for the 400m hurdles this season.
She won the Diamond League series meets in Rabat and Oslo and captured the Jamaican 400m hurdles national title for the first time since 2019.
Clayton was fifth in the 400m hurdles Olympic final in Paris and is a two-time World Championship bronze medalist in the 400m hurdles from 2019 and 2023.
Alfred says 100m semi-final performance gave her confidence to produce best in the final- “I knew I had it in the bag”
At any major championship, a strong performance in the semi-finals usually makes an athlete’s confidence skyrocket heading into the round where the medals will be decided.
According to reigning Olympic 100m champion Julien Alfred, this was exactly the case for her in Paris in August.
After getting through her heat comfortably in 10.95, Alfred, 23, was drawn in a brutal second semi-final that also included 2023 World Champion Sha’Carri Richardson and was supposed to have 10-time World and three-time Olympic Champion Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce.
Fraser-Pryce failed to turn up for the race meaning Alfred still had Richardson to contend with.
“When I saw the line-up, I was like man, I have to run! I really have to run tomorrow. I kept thinking about how I’m going to execute,” she said on a recent episode of Out D' Blocks on the SportsMax TV YouTube Channel.
“I had to psych myself up mentally,” she added.
The execution couldn’t have gone more perfectly for the St. Lucian as she blasted out of the blocks, getting a big lead on Richardson before shutting down towards the line to win in 10.84.
She then repeated in the final, speeding to a personal best and national record 10.72 to win her country’s first ever Olympic medal.
Alfred says her semi-final performance gave her the confidence she needed to produce her best in the final.
“After that semi-final, I gained so much confidence,” she said.
Crossing that line and executing such a good race and even slowing down in the last five metres of the race, I knew I had it in the bag as long as I go out there and do it in the final,” Alfred added.
The World Indoor 60m champion said the performance in the semi-final helped her to be calmer in the final.
“I was as relaxed as possible. The way that semi-final turned out was the best thing that happened to me because I gained all the confidence,” she said.
“Just going back to the warm-up area, my coach kept telling me we’re not done yet, we have one more round,” she added.
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