100M

300 children in the communities were gifted toys and food items from her sponsors Digicel and Grace Foods.

Transportation for the gifts was provided by KIG Jamaica.

The 19-year-old was a member of Jamaica’s gold medal-winning Women’s 4x100 team at the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo, running a blistering first leg to help the team achieve a national record of 41.02.

Williams also won the sprint double at the 2018 World Junior Championships in Tampere, Finland with times of 11.16 in the 100m and 22.50 in the 200m, her current personal best.

Her 100m personal best stands at 10.97 done in Florida in June this year.

The 22-year-old Whyte, who ran a blistering leadoff leg to set up Jamaica’s impressive win in the sprint relay team in Doha last October, secured a sprint double at the meet held in Marietta, Georgia.

In what was her first race in months Whyte clocked a solid 11.57s to win the 100m while running into a stiff headwind of -1.8m/s. She completed the double when she also won the 200m in 23.59.   She told Sportsmax.TV that she was happy to be competing again after months of quarantine lockdown.

“It felt great being able to compete for the first time. I was eager to see where I am at competition-wise since I haven’t been able to train as I would want to but I am pretty pleased,” she said. “Hopefully there will be more meets and I can take it one race at a time and finish the season on a positive note.”

Under circumstances where she was unable to train for some time because of the Covid19 pandemic, Whyte said she was satisfied with the times.

“The times were not bad being that I was unable to use any training facility for about three months. I had to improvise and get smart with what I had available. So things were challenging but the time was okay for the first race under the circumstances of the lockdown,” she said.

The pandemic might have crippled the world for the past few months but it has not shifted Whyte’s focus on achieving her goals, especially after her inspiring performance in Doha that has whetted her appetite for more high-quality global competition.

“Training started out great after Doha. I was working on my weak points and I was really looking forward to the 2020 Olympics but we can’t change the things we can’t control. However, I am still excited about the upcoming Olympics. My goals haven’t changed,” she said.

“I am just eager to get competing and to see where I am and to improve and take what I have learnt into the next season to come.”

East showcased her exceptional talent by clinching the Class 3 Girls 100m title in commanding fashion, crossing the finish line in a personal best time of 11.42 seconds. Her electrifying run secured the gold medal, leaving Adora Campbell of St Jago High School trailing behind with a time of 11.52 seconds, earning her the silver. Kerelle Etienne from Edwin Allen High School claimed the bronze with a time of 11.73 seconds.

Notably, East's winning time surpassed the performance of Carifta U17 girls champion Jamiah Nabbie from the Bahamas, who clocked 11.67 seconds to claim gold in her home country last year. East's improvement from her fourth-place finish last year, where she ran 11.97 seconds, has boosted her confidence for the upcoming Carifta Games.

Reflecting on her victory and the significant improvement in her time, East expressed her optimism, stating, “It does [boost my confidence], my time is better this year so I am hoping for the best. A new personal best and also a new season’s best; I’m really proud of myself and I hope to continue going forward.”

Despite facing stiff competition, East remained unfazed and focused on her goal. She credited her support system for helping her stay composed, saying, “I know that all my friends and family, especially my mom and my dad were right there behind me pushing me and supporting me along the way so I didn’t feel pressured, I just knew what I had to do and I came out here to do it today.”

Forbes, who had previously run a time of 11.51 to finish third in her 100m heat, unfortunately could not complete the final due to her injury. In an Instagram post following the incident, she expressed deep gratitude towards Richardson and Terry for their immediate support.

"Today didn't go as I expected. Picked up an injury during my 100m final. Thanks to @canonlybeme__ and @itsshacarri, who ran to my rescue ♥️??," Forbes shared.

Despite the setback, Forbes remained optimistic about her recovery and future performances.

"For those who are reaching out, I'll be okay in the name of Jesus. I just got to do some recovery, and I'll definitely be back stronger ?? ❤️," she assured her supporters.

She concluded with an uplifting message: "Remember, pain is temporary, and scars do tell stories."

The spontaneous act of sportsmanship and camaraderie between athletes from rival nations highlighted the mutual respect and support within the track and field community. Richardson and Terry's immediate response exemplified the true spirit of sportsmanship and solidarity among athletes, transcending national rivalries in pursuit of collective support and encouragement.

Forbes' determination to recover and return stronger underscores her resilience and dedication to her athletic journey, inspiring others with her positive outlook despite the challenges faced during competition.

The event appears to be as open as it was in the French capital two decades ago, when Collins put St Kitts and Nevis on the global track and field map. No-one stands out as a clear favourite, though Fred Kerley perhaps ought to be considered the main contender.

The 6ft 3in Texan is the reigning champion, having led a US medal sweep on home soil in Oregon last year ahead of Marvin Bracy-Williams and Trayvon Bromell. US sprinters have won the last three golds and Kerley will lead the starred and striped challenge in Budapest, supported this time by Cravont Charleston, the 2019 world champion Christian Coleman and two-time world 200m champion Noah Lyles, a potential ‘surprise’ packet.

Kerley has contested just five 100m races this season, two of them in the Seiko Golden Grand Prix in Yokohama in May, where he clocked a season’s best of 9.88. He registered comfortable victories on the Diamond League circuit in Rabat and Florence, both in 9.94, but was edged out in a tight finish in Silesia on 16 July, South Africa’s Akani Simbine taking the win in 9.97 with Kerley and Cameroon’s Emmanuel Eseme clocking 9.98 in second and third, and the newly-crowned US champion Charleston fourth in 9.99.

Ahead of Kerley on the 2023 world list stand two potential challengers in Britain’s Zharnel Hughes (9.83) and Kenya’s Ferdinand Omanyala (9.84).

When Hughes, a qualified pilot, flew to his 9.83 clocking in New York on 24 June, he sliced 0.04 off the ancient national record held by the only British sprinter to have claimed the world 100m title, Linford Christie, who triumphed in Stuttgart 30 years ago. Should he strike gold in Budapest, the native Anguillan would make it five wins in the event for his Jamaican coach, Glen Mills, the sprint guru who guided Usain Bolt to victory in 2009, 2013 and 2015, and also Yohan Blake in 2011.

“Obviously people are going to target the time I’ve run,” said Hughes, who won the European 200m title last year, “but I don’t put pressure on myself. That’s when things can go topsy turvy.”

Hughes, who false started in the Olympic final two years ago, has no other official sub-10 to his name in 2023, although he won the British title in 10.03 in monsoon conditions and smashed John Regis’ 30-year-old national 200m record with 19.73 for third place behind Lyles (19.47) and Botswana’s Letsile Tebogo (19.50) in the London Diamond League meeting on 23 July.

Omanyala is the only man who has dipped under 9.90 twice this year, the Commonwealth champion backing up his 9.84 from the Kip Keino Classic in May with 9.85 in the Kenyan trials on 8 July. The former rugby player has yet to make a global 100m final but has been a consistent performer on the Diamond League stage, placing third in Rabat, second in Florence and Paris and first in Monaco, and is not lacking in confidence.

Simbine’s victory ahead of Kerley in Silesia will have raised his hopes of finally making a global podium – and winning the race to become Africa’s first medal winner in the event. The 29-year-old South African has long been the ‘nearly’ man of the 100m: fifth in London in 2017, fourth in Doha in 2019 and fifth in Oregon last year, as well as fourth and fifth in the last two Olympic finals. With four successive wins behind him (in Kladno, Ostrava, Stockholm and Silesia), he heads to Hungary with serious momentum.

The African challenge promises to be fierce. Like Simbine and Omanyala, Eseme and Tebogo have also notched top three finishes on the Diamond League circuit, while Simbine’s South African teammate Shaun Maswanganyi has a 9.91 clocking to his name.

A place on the podium might not be beyond the scope of all four US sprinters – including Lyles, who beat Omanyala and Tebogo to win the 100m at the Paris Diamond League and was recovering from Covid when he took third place in the US Championships. He boasts a PB of 9.86.

A new kid on the senior international block, the 20-year-old Bahamian Terrence Jones who won the NCAA indoor 60m title in March, has run 9.91.

The Jamaican challenge will be led by Oblique Seville, who finished fourth in Oregon last year, and the emerging Rohan Watson, who started the year with a best of 10.41 but won the Jamaican title in 9.91. Ackeem Blake stands fourth on the world list with 9.89 but, having placed fourth in the trials, is on the entry list as a reserve.

Nkrumie, who took silver in the 100m at the 2022 World U20 Championships in Colombia, sent shockwaves through the track & field world when he sped to a national junior record 9.99 to take the Class One Boys 100m title at the ISSA Grace Kennedy Boys and Girls Championships in March.

Unfortunately, the 19-year-old’s season was then interrupted by a hamstring injury he sustained as the Carifta Games just over a week later.

The former Kingston College standout recovered from his injury in time for the National Championships but was, understandably, far from his best.

He ran 10.21 in the heats but failed to get to the final after a 10.39 effort for sixth in his semi-final.

Nkrumie closed out his season with a silver medal at the Pan Am U20 Championships in Puerto Rico in on August 4. His time in the final was 10.31.

Thompson-Herah ran a world-leading 10.85s in a dominating performance at the Diamond League meeting in Rome. She was metres clear of the USA’s Aleia Hobbs (11.12) and the Ivory Coast’s Marie-Josee Ta Lou, the bronze medallist from last year’s 100m final at the World Championships in Doha, Qatar.

Thompson, who finished fourth in Doha in 10.93, said her performance on Thursday told her all she needed to know.

“I leave here with the world-leading time, I'm super excited,” she said.

“This tells me where I am at the end of this season, and tells me how I can prepare for next year. I am super excited.”

The Covid-19 pandemic enforced a lot of changes to the track season and Thompson-Herah admitted that it has been challenging. However, she has managed to find the motivation she needs while looking forward to the Olympics where she intends to defend her Olympic double from Rio 2016.

“This year required more adjusting, and my goal was to push back and to motivate myself,” she said. “I am a double Olympic champion, so I want to be in my top form next season. We had some competitions in Jamaica, but obviously, the field was not as strong as it is here.”

Blake, who in June signalled a return to form this year following a 9.85 clocking at the Jamaica National Championships, his fastest time in a decade, sped to a 9.96 timing to miss out on the meet record of 9.93 set in July 2019 by Arthur Cisse of the Ivory Coast.

Nonetheless, the time was good enough for the 2011 world 100m champion to win comfortably ahead of the USA’s Cravont Charleston, who finished in second place in a time of 10.12.

Jeremiah Azu of Great Britain picked up the other podium spot after finishing third in 10.16.

Williams, meanwhile, won the triple jump with a mark of 13.92m.

The 33-year-old Jamaican has been well off her best this season. She has only managed a best of 14.29m this season, well below her lifetime best of 14.69m.

However, against a less than a stellar field, she proved to be imperious.

Mariko Morimoto of Japan leapt out to a lifetime best of 13.82m to claim second place while Nesa Filipic of Slovenia mustered her best effort of 13.78m for third.

Jamaican Olympic finalist Damion Thomas was second in the 110m hurdles running 13.46 to finish runner-up to the USA’s Eric Edwards, who ran 13.40 for the victory.

Norway’s Vladimir Vukicevic finished third in 13.61.

The 34-year-old Blake's performance in the heats was a testament to his experience and competitive edge, as he comfortably advanced to the final with the fastest qualifying time. This season-best effort underscored Blake's determination to remain a formidable force in sprinting, even as he continues to navigate the later stages of his illustrious career.

In the final, Blake crossed the finish line third with a time of 10.26 seconds. However, his results were invalidated due to a false start that led to his disqualification. The disqualification came as a significant disappointment, especially after his promising performance in the heats.

Fellow Jamaican sprinter Christania Williams also impressed at the meet. Williams, who is based in Austria and trained by Coach Phillip Unfried, ran a strong race in the women's 100m, clocking an impressive 11.33 seconds. Her performance highlights her consistent progress and potential as she continues to train and compete in Europe.

The Raiffeisen Austrian Open served as a crucial platform for athletes like Blake and Williams to gauge their form and readiness as they prepare for upcoming national champions in just over a month’s time. Despite the setback in the final, Blake's season-best time in the heats remains a positive takeaway, indicating his capacity to compete at high levels.

For Williams, the meet was an opportunity to showcase her talent and the results of her training under Coach Unfried's guidance. Her time of 11.33 seconds is a solid mark as she aims to continue improving and achieving new personal bests.

The 28-year-old clocked 9.88 seconds to finish third in Sunday’s night final – less than an hour after Katarina Johnson-Thompson won heptathlon gold in Budapest.

Hughes became the first British man to win an individual 100m sprint medal at the worlds in 20 years – since Darren Campbell’s bronze in 2003.

The USA’s Noah Lyles took the title in 9.83 seconds with Botswana’s Letsile Tebogo winning silver, just a thousandth of a second ahead of Hughes.

It marks Hughes’ comeback after he was disqualified for a false start in the Olympic 100m final.

He said: “The heartbreak I’ve been through from Tokyo was devastating. Last year, I missed out on the finals. I got knocked out in the semis. I told myself this time, ‘I’m not getting knocked out whatsoever. I’m going to give it my very best’.

“I got through that semis and I told myself in the warm-up, ‘believe Zharnel. You got this’.

“I kept it all in. I cried a lot but lessons were learnt and I dug deep. It’s been years of trying, years of lessons – I wouldn’t call it failure – years of lessons.

“Doubts were there. People probably didn’t believe in me as much but I just need to believe in myself. Over the years the speed has always been there but the mind wasn’t aligned properly. Now it’s instinct.

“This morning I wrote down, ‘get a medal’. I thought I won. Being in the race, it looks a lot closer but a medal is a medal.”

The European 200m champion went into the race as the fastest man in the world this year and was boosted after defending champion Fred Kerley crashed out in the semi final, along with Olympic champion Marcell Jacobs.

Hughes, ranked 12th in the world ahead of the championships, had qualified fourth fastest after running 9.93s in his semi.

Yet he had struggled with a slow start in the heat and semi and, despite the fastest reaction time in the final, still needed to recover in the last 50m to ensure he snatched a podium place in a tight race.

It caps a remarkable summer for the Anguilla-born star, who trains under Usain Bolt’s former coach Glen Mills, after he broke two long-standing British records.

In June, he shattered Linford Christie’s 30-year 100m record by running 9.83s in New York.

A month later in London, he broke John Regis’ 200m mark to post 19.73s. Hughes is now eyeing the 200m and 4x100m relay.

Eugene Amo-Dadzie, an accountant who is due back to work as a senior management accountant for property developer Berkeley Group on August 29, bowed out in the semi-final after running 10.03s – still quicker than Olympic champion Jacobs.

Reece Prescod ran 10.26s and also failed to qualify, ending his championships as the 25-year-old pulled out of the 4x100m relay squad last week.

The 27-year-old is the fastest man in the world this year over 100m having clocked 9.83 seconds in New York last month.

That broke Linford Christie’s 30-year national record and Hughes ran 19.77 seconds to win the 200m title at the British Championships on Sunday.

It completed the double after his 100m victory on Saturday. His time in the 200m was just a tenth of a second behind Noah Lyles’ world lead but would not have counted because of the 2.3m/second wind.

But Hughes, who needed a trip to hospital in Jamaica earlier this year after a punishing training session, knows he is a contender for titles at next month’s Worlds in Budapest.

“I am the fastest man in the world and it didn’t happen overnight,” he said, aiming to end the 20-year British medal drought in the men’s 100m at the World Championships.

“It took a lot of hard work. If you were to see some of the clips of me training you will see why I’m so happy with the results.

“I push myself tirelessly. I ended up in hospital because I couldn’t breathe, my sugar dropped a little bit but I’m here, excited and running fast. I was forcing myself to hit the times and the recovery times.

“That day was a difficult day for training. I over-exerted myself. I didn’t pass out but I couldn’t recover properly and every time I tried to get up I couldn’t stand up for long.

“I’m grateful to see the rewards happening for the hard work. We still have time to go and I can get a lot faster. I know I’m in the shape to run 19 seconds, that’s what is exciting. It can come again.”

Meanwhile, Daryll Neita defended her 200m title in Manchester after opting to focus on the longer distance and not aim to retain last year’s 100m crown.

She said: “I got my first ever individual medals last year, both were probably not as good as they should have been so I went into the winter and worked on so many things and my mindset has evolved.

“I’m not scared to beat people, I want to be number one. I also know where the ranks are, I know who is running 10.6 and 10.7 (in the 100m). I’m not there yet but I’m working towards it.

“I’ve done a lot of 100m, but not a lot of 200m. This week was getting more practice at the event. I’m not bothered about people’s predictions, opinions or validations.”

Laura Muir suffered a surprise 1500m defeat as she finished second to Katie Snowden. Having split with long-term coach Andy Young earlier this year she is training on her own in the lead up to Budapest.

“There’s a lot going on at the moment,” she said.

Keely Hodgkinson also threw down the gauntlet to her rivals and is ready to fight for global gold.

The 21-year-old is set for Budapest as she prepares to face Athing Mu and Mary Moraa.

The USA’s Mu has beaten Hodgkinson to 800m gold at the Olympics and last year’s World Championships in Eugene, with the Brit twice forced to settle for silver.

Kenya’s Moraa beat Hodgkinson at the Lausanne Diamond League meet last month and came third in the States last year.

But Hodgkinson, who won the 800m at the British Championships on Sunday, is enjoying the battle and having a target on her back after her stunning rise since becoming the youngest ever women’s 800m European indoor champion in 2021.

She said: “I do like it; I like the idea of give it all you’ve got – try to beat me today. Some days I’ll lose but hopefully most of the time I’ll win.

“They say getting to the top and maintaining it is the hardest part, I found that. There’s a bit more of a target on your back but I enjoy it, I don’t mind it.

“I’m looking forward to it, we’ll race each other and see who comes out on top. I think this year will maybe be closer than previous years between all three of us

“It’s hard because I don’t race them very often. Every year is different, indoors I was beating Mary quite easily, now it’s really hard. I don’t know what can happen. Going into Budapest I’ll run my race and no-one else’s.”

Katarina Johnson-Thompson threw 12.86m in the shot put before running 23.58 seconds to come third in her 200m heat as she prepares for the heptathlon in Hungary.

The 28-year-old clocked 9.88 seconds to finish third on Sunday night – less than an hour after Katarina Johnson-Thompson won heptathlon gold in Budapest.

Hughes becomes the first British man to win an individual 100m sprint medal at the worlds in 20 years – since Darren Campbell’s bronze in 2003.

The USA’s Noah Lyles took the title in 9.83 seconds with Botswana’s Letsile Tebogo winning silver just a thousandth of a second ahead of Hughes.

European 200m champion Hughes went into the race as the fastest man in the world this year and was boosted after defending champion Fred Kerley crashed out in the semi final, along with Olympic champion Marcell Jacobs.

Hughes, ranked 12th in the world ahead of the Championships, had qualified fourth fastest after running 9.93s in his semi.

Yet he had struggled with a slow start in the heat and semi and, despite the fastest reaction time in the final, still needed to recover in the last 50m to ensure he snatched a podium place in a tight race.

It caps a remarkable summer for the Anguilla-born star, who trains under Usain Bolt’s former coach Glen Mills, after he broke two long-standing British records.

In June, he shattered Linford Christie’s 30-year 100m record by running 9.83s in New York.

A month later in London, he broke John Regis’ 200m mark to post 19.73s.

Eugene Amo-Dadzie, an accountant who is due back to work as a senior management accountant for property developer Berkeley Group on August 29, bowed out in the semi-final after running 10.03s – still quicker than Olympic champion Marcell Jacobs.

Reece Prescod ran 10.26s and also failed to qualify, ending his Championships with the 25-year-old pulling out of the 4x100m relay squad last week.