As the Honorary Consul of Jamaica in Uruguay, Jorge Andres Elissalde felt it only fitting that he made the trip down to the Caribbean Island to not only enjoy the sun, fun and excitement, but also to play his part in assisting Sandals Foundation to give back to its community.

Elissalde was among the over 70 individuals that made the trek from various countries to strut their stuff in the Sandals Latin American Travel Agents Golf Tournament, which is used a driver for participants to experience and, later sell Jamaica as the destination of choice for sports and tourism.

As fate would have it, Elissalde's team which included Jorge Barbut, Jose Cabrera and Leonardo Curutchague, finished tops at the four-man scramble format, two-day event with a final score of 60 over nine holes. They scored 33 on the first and 27 on the final day of the competition.

They won ahead of the Brazilian team of Breno Luz, Ricardo Dantas, Denilson Milan, and Raphael Abreu, which scored 28 on the first day and 37 on the final day to finish five-strokes behind on 65 at the Sandals Golf and Country Club.

"I am very proud to be the Honorary Consul of Jamaica and I am happy that we had the chance to come here and not only participate in the Sandals tournament, but also to see what the foundation is doing because we know they do a lot of good for the people here, especially in the Ocho Rios region. So, it's always a pleasure to play our part and we also won which is double the excitement," Elissalde told SportsMax.tv. 

Besides the friendly competition between others from Mexico, Panama, Peru, Colombia, Argentina, among others, Elissalde reiterated the serious side of the golf tournament, as the side shows raised US $316 for the Sandals Foundation which might seem a small figure but will go a far way in helping those in need.

Mauricio Fuerte (Closet to the Pin Men), Antonio Perez Verdia Rubio (Longest Drive Men), and Taryn Stanton (Longest Drive Women), won those side events.

Beyond that, the travel agents also brought with them books and other school supplies to be distributed in the community.

"Jamaica is a destination that not many Uruguayans know, it is a beautiful country with beautiful people and so doing this (tournament) is one way of basically opening the doors so those Uruguayans can experience Jamaica through us and then they will be more eager to come and visit," Elissalde reasoned.

"So what Sandals is doing is very good, it's a mix of sports and tourism and, more importantly, the fact that they use these golf tournaments to raise funds for the foundation is incredible and giving back is always something that many people gravitate towards. So again, we are very happy to play our part," he added.

During his visit, Elissalde also paid a courtesy call on Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Meanwhile, Jake Coldiron, national manager of golf sales, expressed delight with the outcome of the tournament which is one of three travel-advisers’ event staged annually by the resort to promote the island as a golfing destination, while giving the resort chain’s sales reps personal experiences of its properties and Jamaica’s varied attractions.

The positive spinoff from the event has propelled Sandals to stage a World Travel Advisors Golf Tournament set for Emerald Bay, Bahamas, next year. Elissalde and his team are expected to be a part of that, along with those from the United States and Canada tournaments to come in September and October respectively. 

"My job is to help the travel advisors grow their business through golf and this year we actually had quite a few travel advisors that had never been to Jamaica, so the ultimate goal for them is to go back to their home country and sell Jamaica, sell Sandals and Beaches Resorts, and bring their clients down here," Coldiron said.

“The Sandals Foundation in general is also a very important part of Sandals Resorts and what is nice about it is that we as a company take it very seriously as far as ensuring that we give back not just in Jamaica but the entire Caribbean. We are a Caribbean-based company, and the ultimate goal is to take care of the Caribbean,” he noted.

While their recent rise in the Fifa Women's World rankings is all well and good, senior Reggae Girlz assistant coach Xavier Gilbert says the focus of the Lorne Donaldson-led staff is more on initiating the next phase of building the programme to not only ensure continued growth and development, but more importantly, success.

Gilbert, beamed about the fact that the Girlz showed mettle against two of the world's best teams –number-five ranked France and number nine-ranked Brazil –at the recently-concluded World Cup jointly hosted in Australia and New Zealand, and pointed to the significance of maintaining that historic momentum.

The now 37th-ranked Reggae Girlz, held France and Brazil to goalless stalemates and secured their first ever World Cup win with a 1-0 scoreline over Panama to progress from the group stage, before going down 0-1 to now 22nd-ranked Colombia in the Round of 16.

Merely making the Round of 16 was an overachievement by the Jamaicans, as they became the first Caribbean nation –male or female –to play in the knockout stages of the World Cup, since Cuba’s feat in 1938 and that Gilbert believes attributed to their six-place jump on the world table.

By virtue of that, the Girlz also moved to fourth in Concacaf behind United States, who are now ranked at number three in the world, Canada who slipped to 10th and Mexico, who slipped to 36th. The Jamaicans overtook Costa Rica, who slipped to 43rd.

"It is important that we move up the ladder because a rise or fall in the ranking shows that you're either doing something right or failing to get to a particular standard to meet certain objectives. So, it is really good for us and of course we are happy because this move, is a testament of the work we have done over the years, to not only get to this point where we improve our rankings, but more importantly, improve our general performance," Gilbert told SportsMax.tv.

"So, it is important that this momentum isn’t lost, as we have always alluded to, we still have areas that we can improve in and our recent achievement just goes to show that the more we are together and the more continuity we have, the better we can become. We just have to build, we can be better, and we can go higher but the only way to do that, is to build," he added.

Gilbert's sentiments were a slight jab in the direction of the Jamaica Football Federation (JFF), as he argued that they failed to capitalise on the Fifa match windows ahead of the World Cup, which would have aided in more sustained preparations that might have yielded more positive results.

"We didn't maximise on games in the other windows ahead of the World Cup and I think that would have helped us move a little further," the tactician said.

"I think once we occupy the Fifa windows we will see some more growth and, by extension movements up the ladder and, of course, we would possibly get a lot more invitations to play more friendly games against some top teams to further build our competitive edge," Gilbert reasoned.

"So, again, the move up the ranking is a step in the right direction, it also augurs well for the Caribbean where the standing of women’s football is concerned and I am hoping we can benefit from it by getting more games, as we have to ensure that we utilise each and every Fifa window to build going forward," he continued.

Another positive spinoff from their World Cup exploit is the fact that a number of players, to include, standout defender Allyson Swaby and Trudi Carter, recently landed contracts in two top leagues.

Swaby, 26, signed with Italian club AC Milan until 2026, for what will be her second stint in the women’s Serie A, having previously represented AS Roma. Carter, 28, who also had a stint with AS Roma which was derailed by injury, Mexican club Atletico San Luis.

“Obviously, that again is a good look, this is what we expect, and it is what we want. We want to have our players plying their trade in some of the top leagues around the world as it not only helps to improve their craft, but also the programme because they will bring that experience and knowledge into the national team which will assist in how we perform against certain opponents,” Gilbert shared.

For the next Fifa match window in September, the Girlz will have an important Olympic qualifying playoff assignment against reigning Olympic champions Canada, where they will hope to secure more positive results and, by extension, rewrite the history books.

Victories in the September 22 and 26 fixtures at the National Stadium and Toronto respectively, would see the Jamaicans being the first Caribbean nation to qualify for women's football at the Olympic Games. It would also secure them the second automatic spot for the Concacaf Women’s Gold Cup, alongside United States.

Though cautiously optimistic about the outcome, Gilbert knows it will by no means be easy, especially with the Canadians wanting to make amends for their failed World Cup campaign. 

"Our performance at the World Cup was a testament in itself of the growth and hard work that has been done by our staff and players, but we remain grounded and so we are well aware of that challenge and know what is ahead," he noted.

Still, if the World Cup has proven anything, it's that the gap between the proverbial big wigs and perceived smaller nations, are rapidly closing.

"We certainly respect what they bring to the table, but we expect a lot of ourselves, and we are optimistic in terms of our ability and what we can do with the right level of preparation. I think with the caliber of players we have and the depth we have, we can prove tougher and more competitive than in the past and hopefully we can get favourable results," Gilbert ended.

The unwavering commitment to task, team spirit and the desire to stand out, were the unifying threads linking Guyana's tale of overachievement at the just-concluded Caribbean Area Squash Association (CASA) Senior Championship at the North Sound Courts in the Cayman Islands.

Simply put, the Guyanese left nothing to chance and now they are reveling in the fact that they not only retained the overall championship but had a host of other accolades that sweetened the deal in what was a clear demonstration of the gulf in class –certainly on this occasion –between them and their regional counterparts. 

Along with the overall title, Guyana also clinched the men’s and women’s team events, as well as the men’s and women’s vets’ titles. They also finished tops in the women’s doubles thanks to Ashely Khalil and Ashley de Groot, and in the men’s and women’s over 40 contest courtesy of Jeranzo Bell and Nicolette Fernandes respectively. 

"After a week of intense competition, we are incredibly proud that the blood, sweat and tears that went into putting Guyana back on that top podium once more, proved worthwhile," Guyana squash said in a social media post.

"Our successes become more meaningful when we have a massive community backing us every step of the way. Thanks to our coach Ramon [Chan-A-Sue] and the family and friends of Guyana squash for your endless support. Also, our sponsors without whom, none of this would be possible. Your contributions towards our team success would never go unrecognized," the post added.

In key team final matches, Guyana defeated hosts Cayman Islands 3-2 on their way to the men’s title, while their female counterparts, had a come-from-behind 3-1 win over Barbados for the women’s honours.

The Guyanese had earlier captured the women’s doubles gold through Khalil and de Groot, who bettered the host pair of Jade Pitcarin and Marlene West, but Fernandes and Khalil had to settle for silver and bronze in the women’s singles behind Barbadian Margot Prow.

Another Barbadian Khamal Cumberbatch topped the men's singles event, ahead of homeboy Cameron Stafford with another home player Julian Jervis, edging Guyana's Alex Arjoon for bronze.

Stafford and Jervis later teamed up to stop Cumberbatch and Shaw Simpson, in the men’s doubles final. Jamaica's Bruce Burrowes and Julian Morris took bronze.

Jamaica's duo of Tahjia Lumley and Jessica Davies, topped the mixed doubles contest, leaving Guyana's Jason-Ray Khalil and Fernandes to settle for silver. The Bajan pair of Darien Benn and Jada Smith-Padmore claimed bronze.

Panama booked their spot in the CONCACAF Under-17 Women’s Championship by securing a 1-0 victory over hosts Jamaica in their qualifying fixture at Sabina Park in Kingston on Sunday.

Due to the withdrawals of Anguilla and Grenada from qualifying Group E, Jamaica and Panama played a pair of fixtures on Friday and Sunday to determine who would progress to the main tournament set for next year.

The teams played out a 1-1 draw at the same venue on Friday before the Panamanians came out on top on Sunday.

Panama’s goal on Sunday came through Analia Arosemena seven minutes before halftime.

Panama got to the Round of 16 at last year's tournament while Jamaica made it to the quarterfinals.

Jamaican runner Aisha Praught-Leer's commitment to athletes' rights and her passion for propelling track and field to greater heights are the reasons behind her decision to seek re-election to the World Athletics Athletes Commission.

Praught-Leer was re-elected to the commission during the recently concluded 2023 World Athletics Championships in Budapest, Hungary.

Praught-Leer's credentials as the 2018 Commonwealth Games 3000m steeplechase champion and her continuous advocacy for athletes' rights have made her a respected and influential figure within the sporting community. Her first election to the Athletes Commission in 2019 marked the beginning of her active involvement in shaping the future of the sport she holds dear.

Explaining her motivation for seeking re-election, Praught-Leer shared, "I decided to seek re-election because I see the sport of track and field ascending back to the top in global popularity. Track and Field is the number one Olympic Sport and now the number four most popular global sport. As our world becomes more fast-paced, we as athletes should expect lots of change and innovation, which I support as long as Athlete’s rights are respected and Athlete earning potential continues in step with the sport’s growth."

First elected in 2019, her dedication to athletes' well-being and rights has been evident in her numerous contributions during her first term in the Athletes Commission.

"As part of the Athlete's Commission I have spoken up to restore all events to the Diamond League, advocated to freeze World Ranking during the Covid Pandemic, pushed for financial assistance for those in the greatest need during the Pandemic, consulted with the AIU in support of anti-doping and safeguarding, supported innovative rule changes like 'Big Q' Only qualification rounds in middle and long distances, served on the Human Rights Working Group to establish a decision-making framework for WA to respect human rights in our sport and served on the World Plan implementation Working Group to help all Areas and Member Federations grow the sport on their home soil," she said.

Praught-Leer's active involvement and her unwavering advocacy have made her a respected voice within the global athletics community. Her re-election is a testament to the impact she has had and the work she plans to continue.

"I have been a very active and outspoken member of the group and I believe my peers re-elected me to continue the work of the last four years. A future priority of mine is to ensure fair play, protect the female category for future generations of female athletes and continue to be a helping hand to our Jamaican Athletes."

It was always expected to be an almighty clash between reigning women’s 4x100m relay champions United States and Olympic champions Jamaica. In the end, it was the Americans who prevailed in the final at the World Athletics Championships in Budapest, Hungary on Saturday.

The American quartet of Tamari Davis, Twanisha Terry, Gabrielle Thomas and Sha’Carri Richardson, topped the event in a Championship record 41.03s Championship Record, ahead of their Jamaican counterparts – Natasha Morrison, Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, Shashalee Forbes and Shericka Jackson –who ended in season’s best 41.21s.

Great Britain’s quartet of Asha Phillip, Imani Lansiquot, Bianca Williams and Daryll Neita, was third in a season’s best 41.97s.

During the event, Fraser-Pryce who has been braving a chronic knee injury, suffered what is reported to be a muscle strain, but like a warrior, pushed through the difficulty to safely hand off the baton, ensuring the country ended with a medal.

Jamaica’s men’s 4x100m team secured a bronze medal on day eight of the IAAF World Athletics Championships in Budapest on Saturday.

The quartet of Ackeem Blake, 100m finalists Oblique Seville and Ryiem Forde and 100m semi-finalist Rohan Watson combined to run 37.76.

The USA’s dream team of Christian Coleman, Fred Kerley, Brandon Carnes and Noah Lyles ran a world leading 37.38 for gold while Olympic champions, Italy, ran 37.62 for silver.

A prayer before making their way into the stadium was the perfect way for the Jamaican quartet to start their bid in the women’s 4X400m relays and they will indeed challenge for a medal at the World Athletics Championships in Budapest, Hungary.

This, as they booked their spot in Sunday’s showpiece event, after finishing tops in their heat on Saturday.

Cherokee Young, running from lane eight, ran the lead leg for the Jamaicans handing off to Nickesha Pryce, who ran a well-paced leg to send Shiann Salmon on her way.

Salmon did well to maintain the gap for Stacey-Ann Williams, who only had to run steady and true to take the team home in a new world leading time 3:22.74.

They won ahead of Canada (3:23.29), with Netherlands (3:23.75) taking the third automatic qualifying spot.

Great Britain won the second heat in 3:23.33, ahead of the favourites United States, who were later disqualified via Technical Rule 24.7, as they passed the baton outside the takeover zone.

That meant Belgium (3:23.63) and Italy (3:23.86) got second and third respectively, while Poland (3:24.05) and Ireland (3:26.18) got the two fastest non-automatic qualifying spots.

The final will be the curtain-call event of the nine-day Championships at 2:47pm Jamaica time.

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Jamaica secured a spot in the final of the men’s 4x400m relay on day eight of the IAAF World Athletics Championships in Budapest on Saturday.

Jamaica’s quartet of Rusheen McDonald, Jevaughn Powell, Zandrion Barnes and D’Andre Anderson ran 2:59.82 to win the second semi-final ahead of France (3:00.05) and Italy (3:00.14).

On the other hand, Trinidad & Tobago’s team of Renny Quow, Asa Guevara, Shakeem McKay and Jereem Richards ran 3:01.54 for seventh in the first semi-final. USA (2:58.47), India (2:59.05), Great Britain (2:59.42) and Botswana (2:59.42) made it through from that race.

 

Jamaica’s lone competitor Danniel Thomas-Dodd remains in contention to possibly add another medal to the country’s tally, as she progressed to the women’s shot put final at the World Athletics Championships in Budapest, Hungary on Saturday.

Thomas-Dodd, the only Caribbean representative in action on the morning session, launched the instrument to a best mark of 19.36m, comfortably clearing the automatic qualifying standard of 19.10m.

The 30-year-old, who copped silver in Doha in 2019, seems poised to replicate or even better that feat, provided she puts together a good series of throws in the final scheduled for the evening session at 1:15pm Jamaica time.

This, as she had to recover from a sluggish start where she opened with 17.75m and 18.77m, before achieving the qualifying mark.

To medal, Thomas-Dodd will need to possibly match or better her 19.77m National Record, as the final includes reigning champion American Chase Ealy, as well as last year’s silver medallist and Olympic Champion, Lijao Gong of China.

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USA, Jamaica, Japan advanced to the final of the 4x100m relay on Friday.

In a keenly contested semi-final heat, the USA team of Christian Coleman, Fred Kerley, Brendon Barnes and JT Smith, just managed to hold off the Jamaican quartet of Ackeem Blake, Oblique Seville, Ryeim Forde and Rohan Watson to win in a what was briefly a world-leading time 37.67.

It was a blanket finish that saw the Jamaicans close behind in 37.68 and the Japanese foursome of Ryuichiro Sakai, Hiroki Yanagita, Yuki Koike and Abdul Hakim Sani Brown, who were third in 37.71.

That world-leading time by the USA lasted mere minutes as Italy’s team of Roberto Rigali, Lamont Jacobs, Lorenzo Patta and Fillippo Tortu stormed to victory in the second heat in 37.65. South Africa’s team of Shaun Maswangnayi, Benjamin Richardson, Clarence Munyai, and Akani Simbine close behind in 37.72.

Great Britain was third in 38.01.

Brazil who ran 38.19 and France 37.98 are also through to the final.

Minister of sports Olivia Grange and Netball Jamaica are leading the charge to assist Sunshine Girls defender Latanya Wilson and her family to get back on their feet, following the loss of their home in an early morning fire at Rum Lane in Downtown Kingston on Thursday.

Details surrounding the incident is unclear, but it is understood that Wilson’s house was one of three that went up in the blaze.

Wilson, an exciting player with a wealth of potential, was among the Sunshine Girls team that secured bronze at the Vitality Netball World Cup in South Africa, recently.

Grange, who is currently at the World Athletics Championships in Budapest, Hungary, revealed that she has already made contacts to secure help for Wilson and family.

“It is particularly painful that Latanya, who was a member of the bronze medal Jamaica team at the recent Netball World Cup in South Africa should suffer this devastating loss,” Grange said in post on social media site X, formerly Twitter.

“From Budapest where I am right now, I am making contacts to get immediate assistance for Latanya and her family,” the post added.

The 22-year-old Wilson, who plies her trade in the Suncorp Netball League in Australia, is currently in the island on break.

Leonie Phinn, a member of Netball Jamaica’s board, expressed the effects of the situation on Wilson and her wider netball family.

“They lost everything and so it is devastating to the entire NJ family. As you know our girls are closely knit, so we are all grieving with Latanya and everyone has reached out and offer their love,” Phinn told Sportsmax.tv.

“We have reached out to her and are rallying support through some channels we have, in addition to working with the minister, whom we are in dialogue with. So, we are doing everything possible to get Latanya the support needed,” she noted.

Jamaica’s Ackera Nugent and Danielle Williams, as well as Bahamian Devynne Charlton secured their spot in the women’s 100 metres hurdles final, after safely navigating their respective semi-finals on Wednesday’s fifth day of the World Athletics Championships in Budapest, Hungary.

While it was unbridled joy for those three, it was heartbreak for another Jamaican Megan Tapper, as the Olympic medallist placed fourth and her time was not good enough to see her through to tomorrow’s final scheduled for 2:25pm Jamaica time.

Charlton and Tapper both ran from semi-final one, where they placed second and fourth respectively. Charlton, 27, secured the second automatic qualifying spot in 12.49s, behind American Kendra Harrison, who won in 12.33s.

Despite running her heart out, Tapper (12.55s) was out dipped by Switzerland’s Ditaji Kambundji (12.50s), who progressed to tomorrow’s final as one of the two fastest qualifiers on time ahead of the Jamaican.

The second semi-final was just an exciting with Ackera Nugent leading for most of the way but was pipped on the line by Nigeria’s World Record holder Tobi Amusan. Nugent stopped the clock in 12.60s, behind Amusan’s 12.56s.

The last of the three semi-finals saw Jamaica’s former World Champion Danielle Williams off to a blistering start, but she lost her composure close to the end and had to settle for third in a season’s best 12.50s. Fortunately, for her the time was good enough to progress to the final.

Puerto Rico’s Jasmine Camacho-Quinn produced a late burst to win in 21.41s, with American Nia Ali (12.49s), just bettering Williams on the line.

 

You can catch live action of the 2023 World Athletic Championships by downloading the Sportsmax App.

It was always expected to be two hard-fought encounters to decide the Men’s and Women’s Singles titles at the 28th edition of the Senior Caribbean Championships, and both lived up to billing, as the Barbados pair of Khamal Cumberbatch and Margot Prow claimed top honours in Cayman Islands on Tuesday.

Cumberbatch and Cameron Stafford of the hosts nation entered the one-week tournament as top seeds in the men’s draw and, so it was no surprise that they locked horns in a keenly contested best-of-five final, which the former won 3-2.

The ding-dong battle which lasted 47 minutes, saw Stafford winning the first game 11-6, before Cumberbatch rallied to win the second 11-3. The Cayman Islands top man again found himself in front winning the third game 11-9, but Cumberbatch asserted authority in the last two games to win 11-9, 11-3.

Predictions were that the women’s showpiece would have been an all-Guyana battle between Nicolette Fernandes and Ashley Khalil, but Prow had other ideas, as she bettered Khalil in the semi-final to set up the gold medal battle with Fernandes.

And the Bajan proved superior to her Guyanese counterpart in the Best-of-five final, registering a 3-1 win. She won the first set 11-7, before Fernandes rallied to take the second 11-9, but Prow, like her compatriot Cumberbatch, showed class at the backend to win the next two games 11-9 and 11-7.

Earlier, Julian Jervis and Stafford, handed Cayman Islands the Men’s Doubles gold medal, as they battled to a come-from-behind 11-7, 11-5 win over the Barbadian pair of Cumberbatch and Shawn Simpson in an entertaining finale. Cumberbatch and Simpson won the first set 7-11.

To get to the finals, both pairs had to endure almost hour-long battles in their respective semi-final encounters, Cumberbatch and Simpson moreso, as they had to come from behind to better the Jamaican pair of Bruce Burrowes and Julian Morrison 11-9, 11-8, after losing the first set 9-11.

While the Cayman duo’s battle against Guyana’s Daniel Ince and Jason-Ray Khalil lasted 48 minutes, they won 2-0 with scores of 11-9, 11-10.

In the Women’s Doubles, Guyana secured gold courtesy of top seeded Ashley Khalil and Ashley De Groot, who justified favouritism with a come-from-behind 11-5, 11-9 win over the second seeded Cayman Islands pair of Jade Pitcarin and Marlene West, who won the opening set 11-4.

Khalil and De Groot had earlier bettered Barbadians Karen Meakins and Margot Prow 11-5, 5-11, 11-5 in a competitive three-set battle lasting just over half-hour, while Pitcarin and West got by the Jamaican duo of Karen Anderson and Mia Todd, 11-9, 11-6.

Jamaica’s Tahjia Lumley and Jessica Davis copped the Mixed Doubles title by virtue of a walkover. The reason for such an outcome remains unclear, as the Jamaicans were expected to face the number two seeded Guyanese pair of Jason-Ray Khalil and Nicolette Fernandes in the showpiece event.

After entering the event as the number five seed, the Jamaicans registered an 11-5, 11-2 win over the Trinidad and Tobago pair of Anthony Allum and Faith Gillezeau, and later scored a two-set 11-5, 11-5 win over top seeded pair of Alex Frazer and Michaela Rensburg of the host nation, on their way to the final.

Meanwhile, Khalil and Fernandes bettered the Barbadian pair of Darien Benn and Jada Smith-Padmore 11-5, 11-8, on their way to the final.

The tournament continues with team action on Wednesday.

There were mixed fortunes for the Caribbean men in long jump qualifying, as a Jamaican trio of Wayne Pinnock, Carey McLeod and Tajay Gayle all progressed to the final, while Bahamian LaQuan Nairn missed out on day five of the World Athletics Championships in Budapest, Hungary on Wednesday.

It is the first time ever that Jamaica will have three athletes in the long jump final at a global athletics championships.

It was one and done for Jamaica’s Pinnock and McLeod, while Gayle took his time to get going before hitting a reasonable mark to secure a spot in the final scheduled for Thursday at 12:30pm Jamaica time.

The 22-year-old Pinnock was poetry in motion where execution is concerned, as he was perfect off the board and that propelled him to a big world-leading mark of 8.54m in a positive 1.2 metres per second reading, which left him in shock.

“The first thing was just to execute as coach told me, push off on the first six steps, maintain my transition and then just run through the board which is what I did. But when I saw the distance, I was like ‘wow’, I wasn’t expecting that, but I’ve thought of this moment every night before I go to bed,” Pinnock said after his leap.

McLeod followed suit on his try, as he also cleared the automatic qualifying mark of 8.15m, cutting the sand at 8.19m in a positive 0.5m/s wind, on his first attempt.

Meanwhile, 2019 World Champion Gayle needed two jumps to find his rhythm, cutting the sand at 7.84m and 7.68m, respectively before leaping to 8.12m in a negative 0.7m/s wind, which was good enough to get him into the final.

Cuba’s Alejandro Parada (8.13m), will also line up in the medal event.

You can catch live action of the 2023 World Athletic Championships by downloading the Sportsmax App.

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