From Douglasville in Georgia, the 17-year-old student at Montverde Academy had several options of where to continue her academic career but eventually decided to return ‘home’.
Hodge has had an outstanding junior career during which she established a number of records for the BVI. At the 2022 Carifta Games in Jamaica, Hodge won the 100m, 200m and long jump and was awarded the prestigious Austin Sealy Award given to the most outstanding athlete of the meet.
In April 2023, she equaled Tahesia Harrigan’s national record for the 100 metres, running 11.12 seconds but later that month, made it all her own when she lowered it to 11.11 seconds in Lubbock, Texas.
She also owns the islands’ 200m record when she ran a time of 22.82 at the 2023 World Athletics Championships in Budapest in August 2023 when she qualified for the semi-finals becoming only the third ever female athlete from the British Virgin Islands to achieve this feat.
Running indoors in March, Hodge set a national record of 22.33 in the 200m. The time is also an Area U18 and U20 record.
Hodge is the latest Caribbean athlete to choose UGA in the coming academic year. US Virgin Islands athlete Michelle Smith and talented Trinidadian twins Sanaa and Sole Frederick have also chosen to attend the University of Georgia next fall
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.
“We are beyond excited to share that we’ve officially partnered with Adidas through NIL. We can’t wait to represent a brand that stands for excellence and innovation on the track,” the 18-year-olds, who have both committed to the University of Georgia, said in a joint statement on Instagram.
“We are grateful for this opportunity and can’t wait to start the beginning of an incredible journey with Team Adidas,” they added.
Both sisters attend the Druid Hills High School in Atlanta and specialize in the 100m and 200m. Sanaa, who has a personal best of 11.33 in the 100m, finished third in the event at the 2023 Carifta Games in the Bahamas, running a time of 11.65. She went two places better in the 200m which she won in 23.60.
She and Sole were members of the T&T 4x100m relay team that won the silver medal at the Games.
She followed up that performance with a bronze medal run at the Youth Commonwealth Games in Trinidad and Tobago in August 2023, clocking 11.48.
No slouch herself, Sole has personal best times of 11.60 for the 100m and 23.41 for the 200m.
In May 2023, the sisters, along with Southwest DeKalb High School twin brothers Isaiah Taylor and Xzaviah Taylor, combined for 13 of the DeKalb County School District (DCSD) 46 medals at the Georgia High School Association (GHSA) State Track Championships.
They have both also been selected to Trinidad & Tobago’s 68-member team for the 2024 Carifta Games set for March 30-April 1 in Grenada.
Though Trinidadian the girls live in the United States and attend the Druid Hills High School in Atlanta, Georgia.
Both 17-year-old girls run the 100m and 200m. Sanaa, who has a personal best of 11.33 in the 100m, finished third in the event at the 2023 Carifta Games in the Bahamas in April, running a time of 11.65. She went two places better in the 200m which she won in 23.60.
She and Sole were members of the T&T 4x100m relay team that won the silver medal at the Games.
She followed up that performance with a bronze medal run at the Youth Commonwealth Games in Trinidad and Tobago in August, clocking 11.48.
No slouch herself, Sole has personal best times of 11.60 for the 100m and 23.41 for the 200m.
In May, the sisters along with Southwest DeKalb High School twin brothers Isaiah Taylor and Xzaviah Taylor combined for 13 of the DeKalb County School District (DCSD) 46 medals at the Georgia High School Association (GHSA) State Track Championships.
