Newly crowned NCAA champion Rivaldo Marshall has thrown his name into a growing pool of promising athletes in the 800m for Jamaica.

The 22-year-old University of Iowa Junior produced 1:46.96 to take gold at the NCAA Indoor Championships held in Boston from March 7-9.

Another member of that pool of promising Jamaican 800m runners, Clemson Senior Tarees Rhoden, ran 1:47.79 for fifth while Vincentian Penn State Sophomore Handal Roban ran 1:48.16 to finish seventh.

“I’m excited. Been working hard these past few weeks and my coach told me just come out here and do my thing,” Marshall said in a post-race interview.

Marshall entered the final lap of the final in second and produced an excellent display of both speed and strength to outlast his opponents and take the title.

“I told myself that once it’s the last lap, no one’s beating me. I train to go as hard as possible in the last lap,” he said.

His winning time was just outside his personal best 1:46.86 done to win at the Tyson Invitational on February 10.

Two weeks later, Marshall had a disappointing showing at the Big 10 Indoor Championships in Geneva, Ohio, running 1:49.32 for fifth.

He said that performance was motivation for him.

“At the Big10 meet, I didn’t run that well and I used that as motivation to work hard these past few weeks,” he said.

This wasn’t the first taste of success on the collegiate circuit for the former Calabar High star.

Before transferring to the University of Iowa ahead of this season, Marshall previously competed for Indian Hills Community College where he won gold at the 2022 NJCAA Outdoor Championships with 1:50.82.

That same year, Marshall took silver at the NJCAA Indoor Championships with 1:51.30. A year later, he took bronze in 1:48.10.

Jamaican Arkansas Junior Wayne Pinnock produced an excellent performance to claim long jump gold on day two of the 2024 NCAA Indoor Championships in Boston, Massachusetts on Friday.

The 23-year-old, who claimed World Championship silver in Budapest last year, won on Friday with a personal best and world leading 8.40m, equaling the Jamaican indoor record set by Carey McLeod last year.

Pinnock’s record-equaling jump came in the fourth round of the competition and was his last jump as he subsequently passed on his fifth and sixth round efforts.

His other distances in the first three rounds were 8.23m, 8.36m and 8.29m. His second-round jump was also a world-leading effort.

Florida State Senior Jeremiah Davis produced a season’s best 8.20m for second while Florida Junior Malcolm Clemons was third with 8.11m.

The former Kingston College standout also won NCAA Indoor gold in 2022.

On the track, Bahamian Texas Tech Junior Terrence Jones led all qualifiers to the final of the men’s 60m with a time of 6.56. Jamaican USC Junior Travis Williams (6.60) and Bahamian Florida Sophomore Wanya McCoy (6.60) also made it through to tomorrow’s final.

McCoy also led all qualifiers in the 200m with a facility record 20.34. Jones also made it through with the same time.

Florida Senior Jevaughn Powell and Texas Tech Sophomore Shaemar Uter both made it through to the final of the 400m with times of 46.05 and 46.09, respectively.

The qualifiers for the 800m final were led by Jamaican Iowa Junior Rivaldo Marshall with 1:47.21.

Vincentian Penn State Sophomore Handal Roban (1:47.55) and Jamaican Clemson Senior Tarees Rhoden (1:47.66) also made it through.