The Jamaica Olympic Association issued a statement on Tuesday congratulating the national senior women’s and under-19 men’s teams on their silver medals at the recently concluded Rugby Americas North tournament held at the UWI Mona Bowl.

The women's senior team narrowly missed out on first place losing to USA South 14-17 in the final while the men's under-19 team suffered a 10-56 loss to the same opponents.

“The Jamaica Olympic Association (JOA) congratulates our member, the Jamaica Rugby Football Union, and its players for historic and silver medal performances in the recently concluded 2022 RAN Senior Women’s 12s and Men’s Under-19 tournament at the University of the West Indies,” said JOA President Christopher Samuda in the statement.

The statement continued: “Rugby in the local Olympic movement is quickly becoming a flagship sport and the JOA will continue to invest in our Reggae Crocs who are demonstrating that the nation's talent is deep and our prowess multi-faceted.”

“The JOA will always invest in giving reality to the ambitions and aspirations of our youth in sport. The sport of rugby is tough and gruelling and our men and women continue to put their health on the line for a nation. The JOA remains extremely grateful to our national players for their valour and salute them for their admirable display of patriotism.”

Kalyssa Van Zanten's goal in extra-time strike earned Jamaica's Reggae Girlz a 1-0 victory over Costa Rica to secure third place in the CONCACAF Women’s Championships in Mexico on Monday night.

Jamaica’s senior men's football team, the Reggae Boyz, is set to play Morocco, Qatar and Ghana in a four-team tournament to run from August 20-26, 2022.

World Championships 100m semi-finalist Kemba Nelson will be training with Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce under the guidance of Reynaldo Walcott at Elite Performance come next season.

Despite winning a record-extending fifth 100m world title, Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce is hungry for more. The 35-year-old Fraser-Pryce won the World Athletics Championships 100m title in a new championship record of 10.67, breaking the previous record set by the USA’s Marion Jones in 1999.

While wearing a stylish wig mirroring her country's national colours, Fraser-Pryce led a Jamaican sweep as Shericka Jackson claimed the silver medal in a personal best of 10.73, which sees her surpass compatriot Merlene Ottey as the third-fastest Jamaican woman. Only Fraser-Pryce (10.60) and Elaine Thompson-Herah (10.54) have run faster.

Thompson-Herah, the Tokyo Olympics 100m champion, was third this time around in a relatively pedestrian 10.81 as the Jamaican women swept the medal places in consecutive global championships.

However, the moment belonged to the 35-year-old Pocket Rocket, who had won the previous 100m titles in 2009, 2013, 2015 and an unprecedented fourth in 2019. She was fourth in Daegu in 2011 because of injury and missed out in 2017 because she was pregnant with her son Zyon.

“I can't even imagine the amount of times I've had setbacks and I've bounced back and I'm here again," said Fraser-Pryce, who became the first athlete to win five titles in the same running event since the World Championships began in 1983.

Only pole vaulter Sergey Bubka, hammer thrower Pawel Fajdek and discus great Lars Riedel have also won the same single disciple five or more times.

 "I continue to remind myself that sometimes it's not because you don't have the ability, but it's the right time. Today was the right time," she continued.

"I feel blessed to have this talent and to continue to do it at 35, (after) having a baby, still going, and hopefully inspiring women that they can make their own journey," added Fraser-Pryce.

"Whenever I'm healthy I'm going to compete. I'm hungry, I'm driven and I always believe I can run faster and I'm not going to stop until I stop believing that."

Fraser-Pryce has now been involved in three 100m medal sweeps for Jamaica. She was the winner in a Jamaican 1-2-2 finish with Sherone Simpson and Kerron Stewart at the 2008 Beijing Olympics and was second to Thompson-Herah in a Jamaican 1-2-3 at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Shericka Jackson won the bronze.

Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce laid claim to being the greatest female 100m sprinter of all time when she won her fifth 100m world title at the 2022 World Athletics Championships at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon on Sunday.

Three of Jamaica’s four ladies advanced to the finals of the 100m at the 2022 World Athletics Championships at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon on Sunday. However, only Olympic champion Hansle Parchment managed safe passage into the finals of the 110m hurdles.

In a display of supreme sprinting from the Caribbean nation of just under three million, Shericka Jackson, Elaine Thompson-Herah and four-time champion Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce easily won their respective heats keeping alive hopes of a Jamaican sweep.

Jackson, drawn in the first heat with Dina Asher-Smith, Kemba Nelson, Julien Alfred and Twanisha Terry, showed her class while cruising to victory in 10.84 with Asher-Smith finishing second in 10.89 to advance to the final.

Nelson was sixth in 11.25 while Alfred was disqualified after a false start.

Thompson-Herah was equally at ease winning her heat in 10.82 with Marie Jose Ta Lou running a season-best 10.87 for second. USA champion Melissa Jefferson, who was third in 10.92 and Switzerland’s Mujinga Kambundji (10.97) also advanced to the finals as the fastest losers.

There was some controversy in the final heat as Tynia Gaither of the Bahamas was disqualified for a false start. However, the re-start was delayed when she questioned the starters and claimed that she did not move.

She eventually relented and left the track.

On the re-start Fraser-Pryce, who is going for an unprecedented fifth title, topped the heat in 10.93 with Aleia Hobbs of the United States (10.96) taking the other automatic qualifying spot. Great Britain’s Daryll Neita missed out on a place in the final despite running 10.97 while finishing third.

Meanwhile, Olympic champion Hansle Parchment is the lone Jamaican advancing to the final of the 110m hurdles.

Parchment ran an easy 13.02 to easily win the third of three heats that also included Devon Allen, clocked 13.09 for second place. Shane Brathwaite (13.21) of Barbados and Damian Czykier of Poland (13.22) who were third and fourth, respectively also advanced to the finals as fastest losers.

The Polish hurdler was 0.05 faster than Jamaica’s Rasheed Broadbell who was third in his semi-final in 13.27 despite hitting several hurdlers. The heat was won by NCAA champion Trey Cunningham in 13.07 ahead of Spain’s Azier Martinez, whose time of 13.26 was 0.01 ahead of Broadbell.

Orlando Bennett was sixth in the first semi-final in 13.67. Reigning world champion Grant Holloway ran a season-best 13.01 to win ahead of Great Britain’s Joshua Zeller (13.31). Both also advanced to the final.

Jamaica’s Stephenie-Ann McPherson led the cadre of Caribbean women advancing to the semi-finals of the Women’s 400m at the 2022 World Athletics Championships in Eugene, Oregon on Sunday.

Grenada’s Kirani James, Christopher Taylor and Nathon Allen of Jamaica as well as Johnathan Jones of Barbados all advanced to the semi-finals of the 400m at Sunday’s third day of the 2022 World Athletics Championships at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon.

However, it was a bittersweet morning session for the Caribbean quarter-milers as Jamaican champion Juvaughn Powell and Dwight St Hillaire of Trinidad and Tobago both crashed out finishing fourth and sixth, respectively in their respective heats. Their times were not good enough to be among the six fastest losers who advance.

With the top three finishers in each heat automatically qualifying for the next round, James, the fastest qualifier from the Caribbean, finished second in 45.29 with Allen in third in 45.61 in the penultimate of the six heats that was won by Botswana’s Boyapo Ndori in a personal best 44.87.

Taylor was also second in his heat, running 45.68, to finish behind gold-medal favourite Michael Norman who cruised to 45.37.

Jones took second in the opening heat won by world-record holder Wayde van Niekerk in 45.18. The Barbadian, who ran impressively during the NCAA season, ran 45.46 to be among the automatic qualifiers.

Also advancing was Mixed Relay gold medallist Lidio Andres Feliz from the Dominican Republic, who was third in the final heat in 45.87.

 Jamaican gymnast Tyesha Mattis has described her debut for Jamaica competing at the Pan American Youth and Senior Gymnastics Championships as an amazing experience and she cannot wait to don the national colours again at the World Gymnastics Championships in England in October.

The 23-year-old Mattis, who along with her sister, recently switched allegiance from England to Jamaica, was the first of 11 All Around gymnasts to qualify for the World Championships.

The All Around gold medallist at the 2013 Australian Youth Olympic Festival said it felt great to be back in competition after a protracted hiatus.

“For me, it was a big experience just to get out there again,” she said. “I didn’t expect the results I had and it was just nice to represent my country and meet my team from Jamaica and it was just an amazing experience.

“I am just grateful to be here on the team and get this experience and I can’t wait to get out there at Worlds and show everybody my routines and my upgraded routines.”

She thanked Jamaica Gymnastics Association President Nicole Grant for affording her the opportunity to “get out there again.”

At the championships that ended Sunday, Jamaica experienced some misfortune as after finishing eighth in the team competition to qualify for the final team spot, a point was deducted from the team, which resulted in the final spot subsequently going to Cuba.

Brazil won the team competition with the USA and Canada finishing second and third, respectively.

It wasn’t all bad news, however, as Team Jamaica’s women made history by making the team qualifications for the first time for the 2023 CAC Games, joining Mexico, Colombia, Cuba, Panama and Venezuela as well as 10 other individuals from others countries with one or two spots at the meet next year.

Meanwhile, Jamaica’s male gymnast Caleb Faulk made some history of his own when he imprinted his name and Jamaica’s in the FIG Code of Points with a very difficult he skill created and flawlessly executed.

According to Grant, the skill was accepted and has been designated an E-value skill worth a massive five points.

The JAGA president thanked her country’s Sports Development Foundation and the Jamaica Olympic Association for the support they provided in helping the team get to the Pan American Championships.

“Thanks also to all the coaches, parents and gymnasts, who also made great sacrifices to compete at the meet,” she said.

Jamaica’s Oblique Seville narrowly missed out on a podium spot in the men’s 100 finals an event that was entirely swept by the United States at the Oregon World Championships on Saturday.

Pre-race favourite Fred Kerley recovered late on to just edge out compatriot Marvin Bracey who seemed destined for gold after getting off to a brilliant start.  A third American Trayvon Brommel was just behind.  Timewise Kerley never quite lived up to the explosive promise of a 9.79 clocking in the first round, but still took the event in a respectable 9.86.  Just ahead of Bracey who clocked 9.88 for second place.  Brommel stopped the clock in an identical time.

Just behind Brommel was Seville who was fourth in 9.97.  Despite missing out on the podium the result capped off a strong season for the 21-year-old who broke 10 seconds for the first time earlier this year and clocked a personal best of 9.86 in May of this year.  Seville is coached by Glen Mills at the Racers Track Club the same place sprint legend Usain Bolt was conditioned.

Earlier the country’s 100m national champion Yohan Blake failed to make it to the final after finishing 6^th in the semi-finals.  

Reggae Girlz coach Lorne Donaldson believes the team has the potential to eventually emulate the feats of the likes of Canada but insists they are still at the building stage.

The Jamaicans were thwarted in their bid to advance to the finals of the Concacaf Women’s Championship following a 3-0 defeat at the hands of defending Olympic champions Canada.

Despite not being at full strength the Caribbean team held its own for long periods of the encounter but was undone by several individual errors.

“We just played the Olympic champions.  The last time I checked they were still the Olympic champions, so they are a very good team.  I think we are taking a lot away from Canada.  We are just a growing team, we are learning, we have been together for 3 weeks and that’s it,” Donaldson said.

“We gave it everything and we just got beat,” he added.

“…We’re just trying to get on with and build something.  So, Canada is an established program.  Maybe one day not too far away we can be like Canada, I think we have the potential to be but we are just trying to build.”

Jamaica and the Dominican Republic have advanced to the final of the Mixed Relay at the 2022 World Athletics Championships in Eugene, Oregon on Friday.

The Dominican Republic team of Lidio Andres Feliz, Fiordaliza Cofil, Alexander Ogando and 2022 world leader in the 400m, Marileidy Paulino, ran 3:12.22 to win the heat while the Jamaican quartet of Demish Gaye, Roniesha McGregor, Karayme Bartley and Tiffany James ran 3:13.95 for third. Ireland were second in 3:13.88. 

The first heat was won by the USA in a world leading 3:11.75 ahead of the Netherlands (3:12.63) and Olympic champions Poland (3:13.70). Italy (3:13.89) and Nigeria (3:14.59) also advanced from heat one to complete the eight team field for the final scheduled for Friday night.

Charokee Young, the 2022 NCAA 400m silver medalist is the latest Jamaican to go pro after signing a professional contract with Puma. Young, the fastest Jamaican woman in the world this year at 49.87, made the announcement on the Puma Performance Instagram page Friday.

“So blessed to announce that I am the newest member of the Puma family,” said Young, who just completed her sophomore year at Texas A&M University, is making her first appearance in an individual event at a global championship after finishing third at Jamaica’s national championships. She was a member of Jamaica's bronze-medal-winning team at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics in Japan.

On Thursday, five-time Olympic gold medalist Elaine Thompson-Herah announced that she is now a member of the Puma family after breaking ties with Nike.

Kemba Nelson, the NCAA 100m silver medalist, and who was third at Jamaica’s national championships in June, also signed with Puma in recent days.

Fitness athlete Avernell Modest is still basking in her third-place finish in the Bikini Class of the Inter-Island Bodybuilding Fitness and Physique Championships held at the Maho Casino Royale in St Maarten on July 3.