Kiara Grant, Oneka Wilson and Ockera Myrie accounted for more than half of Clemson University Women's 68 points at the Atlantic Coast Conference championship that concluded in Louisville, Kentucky, on Saturday night.

In her first conference championships since she transferred from Baylor in the Big 12, Ackera Nugent set a pair of new personal bests in the 60m hurdles and 60m dash as Arkansas crowned themselves SEC champions on Saturday.

Nugent, who holds the U20 60m world record of 7.92, stormed to a personal best 7.81 to win the silver medal behind NCAA record holder Masai Russell, who took gold in 7.77s.

The winning time was just outside Russell’s collegiate record of 7.75 run earlier in the season.

Russell, a senior at Kentucky, broke the previous meet record of 7.89 set by LSU’s Tonea Marshall in 2020 and facilities record of 7.79 that had been held by Clemson’s Briana Rollins since 2013.

Nugent, who was also under the previous meet record, eclipsed her previous best of 7.88 set in January.

Tennessee’s Charisma Taylor ran 8.03 for the bronze medal.

Nugent would have gone into the hurdles final with a boost in confidence after winning the bronze medal in the 60m dash in a personal best of 7.20, finishing just behind silver-medallist Georgia’s Kaila Jackson who clocked 7.17.

Tennessee’s Jacious Sears ran a personal best 7.11 to win the gold medal.

Arkansas’ women topped the table with 130.5 points. Florida was second with 84 while Tennessee finished third with 56.33 points.

Alabama and Ole Miss shared fourth place with 54 points each.

Meanwhile, Arkansas' men also wrapped up the men's title scoring 102.25 points, some of which were contributed by Clemson's Roje Stona.

The former St Jago thrower hit a brand new personal best of 19.96m that won him the bronze medal in the men's shot put.

The top three men all produced personal bests as silver-medallist Jordan West of Arkansas hit his best throw ever of 20.29m. 

The winner, John Meyer of LSU, had the winning mark of 20.37m.

Florida finished second in the men's standings with 73 points while Alabama's 63 points put them third.

Georgia (59) and Tennessee (54) rounded out the top five.

The Caribbean was well represented at Friday’s University of South Carolina Indoor Open in Columbia, South Carolina.

Guyana's Lloyd McCurdy and Jamaican Sadiki Marsh were among the winners on the men’s side.

The 23-year-old McCurdy, competing unattached, jumped a personal best 16.04m to take the win ahead of Jamaicans Shemar Miller, who did 15.27m, and Rajaun Ricketts who did 14.99m. Both Miller and Ricketts attend Benedict College.

Marsh, also a student at Benedict College, won the 800m in 1:55.86 ahead of the Wingate University pair of Ben Aris (1:57.53) and Jakob Rettschlag (1:57.80).

Trinidadian Limestone College senior Che’ Lara ran a personal best 47.68 for second in the 400m behind South Carolina’s William Spencer Jr who ran 47.38 for the win. South Carolina’s Edward Richardson was third in 48.37 while Jamaican St. Augustine’s sophomore Sean Kalawan was fifth 48.96.

Lara’s Limestone College teammate, Grenadian Kurt Modeste, ran 21.33 for third in the 200m behind South Carolina’s Evan Miller (20.95) and Lenoir-Rhyne’s Trent Davis (21.23).

On the women’s side, Haiti’s Mulern Jean sped to 8.27 to win the 60m hurdles. Barbados’ Tia-Adana Belle was second in 8.40 while Jamaican Charleston Southern senior Chaneal Harris was third in 8.55.

Belle also enjoyed a top-three finish in the 200m, finishing third in 24.38 behind 17-year-old American sensation Shawnti Jackson (22.91) and Charleston Southern’s Lauryn James (24.16).

Dominica’s Mariah Toussaint was also a winner on the day, jumping 6.20m to comfortably win the long jump ahead of the University of West Georgia’s Pashience Collier (5.71m) and William Carey’s Zaniyah Wilson (5.68m).

Mississippi State Junior Rosealee Cooper won the Women’s 60m hurdles at the Clemson Bob Pollock Invitational in South Carolina on Friday.

The 22-year-old former St. Jago High standout ran 8.07 to win ahead of Tennessee’s Charisma Taylor (8.10) and Amber Hughes (8.20) who ran unattached.

Jamaican 2015 World Champion in the 100m hurdles, Danielle Williams, was also in the race but was disqualified after a false start. She had earlier run 8.07 in the prelims to advance as the fastest qualifier.

Elsewhere, Antiguan Tennessee Junior Joella Lloyd ran 7.21 to finish third in the 60m behind teammate Jacious Sears (7.17) and Nike’s Kayla White (7.20).

Lloyd represented Antigua & Barbuda in the 100m at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 as well as the World Championships and Commonwealth Games in 2022.

Jamaican Arkansas Sophomore Ackera Nugent continued her excellent form to start her 2023 indoor season by running a personal best 7.88 to win the 60m hurdles on day two of the Razorback Invitational in Fayetville, Arkansas on Saturday.

Nugent, who transferred to Arkansas from Baylor before the season, finished comfortably ahead of Leah Phillips of LSU (8.02) and Jayla Hollis of Florida (8.19). Phillips’ time was also a personal best.

Nugent’s 7.88 is the third fastest time in the world this year behind Masai Russell’s 7.75 and Alaysha Johnson’s 7.82.

In the Men’s equivalent, Nugent’s Arkansas teammate and former Jamaica College star Phillip Lemonious was third in the men’s 60m hurdles in 7.73 behind American World Championship 110m hurdles silver medalist Trey Cunningham (7.60 meet record) and Arkansas teammate Matthew Lewis-Banks (7.72).

Jamaican World 200m champion Shericka Jackson says she feels no pressure to replicate her exploits from her phenomenal 2022 season, insisting that once she is healthy, the times and performances will come naturally.

Jackson’s comments came after opening her 2023 outdoor season with a 53.11 effort to win the 400m ahead of GC Foster College’s Odeisha Nation (55.37) and Christine Cheka (55.78) at the Queen's/Grace Jackson meet at the National Stadium in Kingston on Saturday.

“For me there’s no pressure. I believe my coach and I did a very good job last year and all we have to do now is stay focused, not on other people’s expectations but his and my expectations. Once I’m healthy, I will definitely go super-fast,” Jackson said.

Jackson is coming off a phenomenal 2022 season. At the World Championships in Eugene, Oregon, she sped to a personal best of 21.45 to win gold in the 200m, becoming the fastest woman alive in the process.

In addition to her 200m crown, Jackson ran a personal best 10.73 to secure second in the 100m behind teammate Shelly Ann Fraser-Pryce.

Prior to last season, Jackson said that one of her goals was to run 10.6 in the 100m, and, according to her, that has not changed.

“Last year I wanted to run 10.6 and I didn’t do that. To finish last year as the sixth-fastest ever and not run 10.6 is a great feeling. I think I have a lot more in the tank for the 100m so I just have to focus on execution and fast times will come,” she said.

Last season, Jackson also made waves on the indoor circuit, finishing sixth at the World Indoor Championships in Belgrade in a personal best 7.04.

On February 4, she will compete in the event at the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix in Boston.

“Last year the 60m helped me improve my start. I ran 7.04 and this year I’m hoping I can go faster,” she said.

The field will be a loaded one, including 400m hurdles World and Olympic Champion and world record holder Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone, World Indoor 60m silver medalist Mikiah Briscoe and World Championship 100m finalist Aleia Hobbs.

“It’s a good field competing so my focus is executing a good 60m,” Jackson said.

Texas A&M senior and Jamaican World Championship finalist Lamara Distin jumped 1.90m to win the high jump at the Razorback Invitational in Fayetville, Arkansas on Friday.

The reigning NCAA Champion won ahead of teammate Bara Sajdokova who recorded a new personal best clearance of 1.83m while Arkansas’ Sydney Billington cleared the same height for third.

Jamaican 400m hurdler Jaheel Hyde opened his 2023 season with a second-place finish in the 200m.

Hyde ran 21.40 to win section one of the Men’s open 200m ahead of Americans Grant Williams (21.86) and Ian Braxton (22.88). American 2019 100m World Champion Christian Coleman was the overall winner with a 20.64 effort to win section two ahead of fellow Americans Will London (21.45) and Khallifah Rosser (21.70).

The 25-year-old Hyde is looking to replicate an excellent 2022 season which saw him win 400m hurdles silver at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham. Hyde also got to the final of the event at the World Championships in Eugene, finishing sixth in a personal best 48.03.

Elsewhere, Jamaican Arkansas senior Carey McLeod jumped 8.09m for second in the long jump behind Florida State junior Jeremiah Davis’s personal best and meet record 8.21m. LSU senior Brandon Hicklin was third with 7.97m.

Former Hydel standout Ashanti Moore opened her 2023 Indoor season with a second-placed finish in the 60m at the Houston Invitational in Texas on Friday.

Adidas’ Moore ran 7.37 to finish behind American Olympic 200m bronze medallist Gabby Thomas who ran 7.30. Sam Houston’s Rajer Gurode was third in 7.38. Moore had the fastest time going into the final after running 7.34 in the prelims earlier.

Elsewhere, B.B Coke alum and current Louisiana representative Javed Jones ran 48.12 to comfortably win the 400m ahead of teammate Nathan Ferguson (48.84) and Houston’s Joshua White 48.95.

Track and field superstars Shericka Jackson and Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone are set for an exciting clash in the 60m at the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix at the New Balance Track in Boston on February 4.

Jackson, who finished as runner-up in Jamaica’s National Sportswoman of the Year awards last week, had a magnificent 2022 season which saw her 21.45 to become the fastest woman alive in the 200m on her way to winning gold in the event at the World Championships in Eugene.

She also ran a new personal best of 10.71 to finish second in the 100m behind Shelly-Ann Fraser Pryce. Jackson, 28, has a 60m personal best of 7.04 which she ran to finish sixth at the World Indoor Championships in Serbia last year.

The USA’s McLaughlin-Levrone, 23, is also coming off a spectacular year which was crowned with her being named as the World Athletics Female Athlete of the Year in December.

In July, she became the first woman in history to run a sub-51 second 400m hurdles when she ran a sensational 50.68 to win her maiden 400m world title. That was after she broke her own then-world record of 51.46, which she ran to win gold at the Tokyo Olympics, with a 51.41 effort at the US Championships in June. McLaughlin-Levrone has never run a 60m race.

World Championship 100m finalist Aleia Hobbs and World Indoor Championships 60m silver medallist Mikiah Briscoe will also be in the field in Boston. 

Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce and Rasheed Broadbell were crowned as Jamaica’s National Sportswoman and Sportsman of the Year, respectively, at the 2022 RJRGLEANER Sports Foundation National Sportsman and Sportswoman of the Year Awards on Friday at the Jamaica Pegasus hotel.

The 35-year-old Fraser-Pryce, now a five-time National Sportswoman of the year after wins in 2012, 2013, 2015 and 2019 previously, produced an outstanding year in which she won her fifth 100m title at the World Athletics Championships in July, in Eugene, Oregon, leading a Jamaican sweep of the podium places with Jackson finishing second in a personal best 10.73 seconds and Elaine Thompson-Herah third in 10.81 seconds.

Fraser-Pryce was also the Diamond League 100m champion in 2022 and ran a world-leading 10.62 seconds among her record seven sub-10.70 100m races during the season.

Meanwhile, Broadbell enjoyed an excellent breakout season in which he ran 13.08 seconds to win 110m hurdles gold at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham and enjoyed some strong Diamond League performances, including a personal best time of 12.99 seconds while defeating American World and Olympic champion Grant Holloway of the USA at the Lausanne Diamond League meet in August, before finishing second to Holloway at the finale in Zurich the following month.

World 200m champion Shericka Jackson and West Indies all-rounder Rovman Powell, who led the Jamaica Tallawahs to their third Caribbean Premier League T20 title and Jamaica Scorpions to their first Super 50 title in 10 years, were the respective runners-up.

Clemson sprinter Kiara Grant started her 2023 collegiate season in ominous form with a personal best and world leading 7.09 seconds to win the 60m at the Red Raider Open at the Sports Performance Centre in Lubbock, Texas on Friday.

The 22-year-old former Alpha standout’s time was also a new ACC record, shattering Tonya Carter’s record of 7.15 seconds, which had stood for 23 years. She is also now the joint eighth-fastest Jamaican in the event.

American Marybeth Sant-Price, the World Indoor bronze medalist from last year, was second in 7.18 with Sedrickia Wynn of Texas State taking third place with a time of 7.35.

Elsewhere, Jamaican Texas Tech sprint hurdler Demisha Roswell produced a time of 7.98 seconds to finish second in the 60m hurdles.

The 25-year-old Vere Technical alum, who lowered her 100m hurdles personal best to 12.44 last season, was beaten by Kentucky’s Masai Russell who ran a collegiate record 7.75 for victory.

LSU’s Leah Phillips was third in 8.14.

World Athletics Under-20 championships gold medallist Ackera Nugent has moved from Baylor University to the University of Arkansas.

The former Excelsior High star runner, who won gold in the 100m hurdles at the world junior championships in Nairobi, Kenya in 2021, had attended Baylor for the past two seasons.

On Wednesday, Nugent, the World U-20 indoor record holder in the 60m hurdles, posted a photograph of herself on Instagram wearing a University of Arkansas shirt while clearing a hurdle with the word ‘Arkansas’ on it.

“Rule #3, forget ATTENTION and GROW in PRIVATE. I spoke less and God did the rest. (Psalms 27:1),” she captioned the post.

At Arkansas, she will join several Jamaicans including World Championships men’s long jump finalist Wayne Pinnock and Olympian Carey McLeod, who both transferred from the University of Tennessee; discus throwers Ralford Mullings, who transferred from Arizona State and Roje Stona who previously attended Clemson University.

Shakwon Coke also signed for Arkansas after leaving Barton County College along with World Under-20 triple jump champion Jaydon Hibbert, who had previously signed with Tennessee. Jamie Farr, Ryan Brown and sprint hurdler Phillip Lemonious are also on the men’s team.

Nickesha Pryce, formerly of Vere Technical and Iowa Western Community College, and Joanne Reid, formerly of St Jago High, are also on the women’s roster.

Rising junior track athlete Jenna-Marie Thomas charts off to Geneva, Ohio, United States on Wednesday on a full athletic scholarship at SPIRE Institute and Academy.

Thomas, 14, currently holds four NGC/NAAATT National Junior Championship titles having swept the girls’ U-15 60-metre hurdles, 200m, 300m hurdles and 400m events at the annual meet in July. There, she also earned U-17 shot put silver.

The IG Fastlane Athletics Club sprinter/hurdler will continue her high school studies at SPIRE in grade ten and will focus on developing in the 200 and 400m sprints, as well as 100m and 400m hurdles.

Thomas was pleased to secure the scholarship at such a young age and is intent on making the most of her budding athletic career. She leaves Holy Faith Convent, Couva to head to Ohio.

“I attained this scholarship by displaying great potential on the track, and academically, which provided the opportunity for me to qualify and receive a full athletic scholarship.

“Getting a scholarship at this age was unexpected; however, receiving one would have been part of my goals as an athlete. Some of my main goals and aspirations I would like to achieve while there are improving and excel in both sprint and hurdle events,” she said.

Locally, she’s been coached by IG Fastlane’s Samuel Roach for the past seven years. Her hurdles coaches are Nataki Dasant, Heathcliffe Thorne, Aiesha Colthrust and Kern Alexis.

Thomas also earned girls’ U-17 4x100m relay bronze at the Carifta Games in Jamaica earlier this year. She was fifth in the 400m final.

Thomas also finished fourth in the women’s 400m event at the 2022 National Open Championships, clocking 57.89 seconds.

Despite her experience on the track, Thomas said she was still a bit nervy to start school in the US. However, the speedster wants to embrace the opportunity and face the challenges head on, in pursuit of a successful athletic career.

“I am bit anxious but mostly excited to study because of the new experiences. I think balancing school and sport would be quite similar to what I normally do just balancing a new environment would be a bit challenging in view of the fact that the climate is different to my home country.

“I plan on approaching everything with a positive attitude in that way it will be one step closer to achieving my goals,” she added.

Her personal bests are; 60m hurdles (9.53s), 100m (12.82s), 200m (25.90s), 100m hurdles (15.31s), 300m hurdles (44.89s), 400m (57.89s), 400m hurdles (1.05s), high jump (1.53m) and shot put (10.06m).

Looking ahead, Thomas said she would like to spend most of her time working on the 400m hurdles.

The World Athletics Championships will return to the Bahamas for the fourth time in six years after successfully winning the rights.

The next edition of the championships is due to be in 2024, and once again the Thomas A. Robinson National Stadium has been earmarked as the venue for the team championship.

The Bahamas hosted the first three editions of the tournament, which took place between 2014-2017.  The event them moved to Yokohoma, Japan in 2019 and then Chorzow, Poland last year.

With the team’s track record of successfully hosting previous events, President of the International Association of Athletics Federations Sebastian Coe is confident the country will be able to deliver another exciting event.

“We have had three wonderful editions of the World Athletics Relays in Nassau, which established this event on the global calendar, so we know we are in safe hands for what will be an important Olympic qualifier for all our relay events,” Coe said.

“We are confident that The Bahamas will offer the best conditions for the athletes and a brilliant atmosphere for both athletes and fans as we mark a key milestone on the road to the Paris Olympic Games.”

The 2024 World Athletics Relays will serve as the main qualifier for teams participating in the men’s and women’s 4 x 100 and 4 x 400 and mixed 4 x 400m metre relays for the 2024 Olympics in Paris, France.

2022 World Championship 400m bronze medallist Sada Williams was controversially left out of Barbados’ Independence Awards as the country celebrated their 56^th year of independence on Wednesday.

Barbadian journalist Mike King described the omission of Williams from the list of awardees as “shocking” and “inexcusable” in a Facebook post.

“To leave World Championship bronze medallist Sada Williams out of the Independence Awards is a national scandal. Members of Cabinet should hold their heads down in shame,” he added.

Williams enjoyed a career best 2022 season in the one lap event.

In July, she ran a personal best and national record 49.75 for bronze at the World Championships in Eugene. She followed that up in August by winning gold at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham in 49.90 and silver at the NACAC Championships in Freeport in 49.86.

In addition to those medals, Williams also enjoyed four top three finishes on the Diamond League circuit last season. She finished third in Monaco and second in Lausanne and Brussels before crossing the line third once again at the Diamond League final in Zurich.