Jamaica continued their march towards another Carifta title winning two of three finals contested on Monday’s final day of competition.

Also, new has emerged that Jamaica will not contest the re-run of the Boys U20 4x100m final that they won on Saturday night at the Thomas Robinson Stadium in Nassau, Bahamas. Jamaica won the relay in 39.68 with the Bahamas finishing second in 39.78.

Trinidad and Tobago finished third in 40.82.

On Monday, The Bahamas took gold and silver in the Girls U17 javelin as Kamera Strachan set a new championship record of 46.07m to win gold. Last year’s winner Dior-Rae Scott, who was the previous record holder, struggled to throw beyond 40m in her first two attempts, but was finally able to establish a mark of 45.13m to secure the silver medal.

It was her only throw beyond 40m.

St Lucia’s Naya Jules threw 42.92m to win the bronze medal in what was her only effort beyond the 40-metre mark.

Meanwhile, Jamaica’s Torian Cavien cleared 1.81m to win the U20 Girls high jump over teammate Deijanae Bruce, who cleared 1.78m. Keneisha Melbourne of Trinidad and Tobago won the bronze having sailed over the bar at 1.75m.

It was 1-3 for Jamaica in the U20 Girls Jade-Ann Dawkins who produced a season-best 6.14m on her fourth jump to take the crown.

Gannes Janae De of Trinidad and Tobago took the silver medal with her leap of 5.93m while Bruce followed up her silver in the high jump with bronze in the horizontal jump where she produced a leap of 5.78m.

Regarding to the relays, the judges in The Bahamas decided on a re-run of the relay after Barbados filed a protest claiming their lead-off runner was left at a disadvantage after the race was recalled when the Bahamian athlete claimed he did not hear the gun.

By then the lead off runners had sprinted about 50 metres.

However, reports said Jamaica’s head coach David Riley said Jamaica would not participate in the re-run because the officials had not declared the race null and void. Unconfirmed reports claimed that other countries who had teams in the final were planning to follow suit.

Two of Jamaica’s relay teams were disqualified last night at the 50^th Carifta Games in Nassau, Bahamas.

The U17 Boys 4x100m team that initially won the silver medal was deemed to have passed outside the change-over zone on the second handover. The silver medal was subsequently awarded to Grenada.

Meanwhile, Jamaica's gold-medal winning U17 Girls' team was also disqualified after Natrece East, while running the third leg, was deemed to have stepped on the inside line of her lane thus prompting the disqualification.

The Boys U20 4x100m that was won by Jamaica has also been called into question after teams protested that they did not have enough time to recover from a faulty start during which the home team Bahamas was left in the blocks.

The race was called back after the lead-off runners were half-way through the opening leg.

That race is now rescheduled to be re-run Monday afternoon.

In a match-up of Jamaican shooters in the Suncorp Super Netball League on Sunday, Jhanielle Fowler’s West Coast Fever rallied to defeat Romelda Aiken-George’s New South Wales Swifts 78-67 and maintain their unbeaten record so far this season.

In the match played at the Ken Rosewall Arena, the defending champions found themselves trailing early to an aggressive Swifts unit lead by Aiken-George’s 33 goals from 37 attempts. Helen Housby supported with 17 goals from 18.

Swifts led 18-15 at the end of the first quarter.

Fowler, meanwhile, who has been near perfect this season, led the comeback as the Fever outscored their opponents 20-17 in the second quarter as the teams went into the half-time break tied at 35-35.

Goal attack Sasha Glasgow scored seven from eight as the champions dominated the third quarter 24-16 before closing out the game 19-16 to take their fourth win from four games this season.

Fowler, the MVP for the last four seasons, has so far scored 220 goals this season, 39 more from fellow Jamaican Shimona Nelson who has scored 181 goals for the Colllingwood Magpies that beat Queensland Firebirds 69-61 on Saturday.

Nelson scored 61 from 66 attempts in the victory over the winless Firebirds.

Meanwhile, despite a league leading 417.5 Nissan Net Points from Shamera Sterling, the Adelaide Thunderbirds suffered their first loss of the season, going down 54-59 to GIANTS.

At the 49^th staging of the Carifta Games at the National Stadium in Jamaica in April 2022, Jamaica won all four sprint relays in impressive fashion. Things were a little different at the 50^th staging at the Thomas Robinson Stadium in Nassau, Bahamas on Sunday.

The day concluded with Brenden Vanderpool of the Bahamas successfully defending his pole vault title in a new Carifta record of 5.06m while holding off the challenge of Tedre O'Neil (4.60m) of St Vincent and the Grenadines, who claimed the silver medal. Tyler Cash of the Bahamas won the bronze medal with his clearance of 4.45m.

Heading into Monday's final day, Jamaica leads the medal standings with 42 medals - 23 gold, 13 silver and six bronze medals. The hosts, Bahamas, have 26 medals - five gold, eight silver and 13 bronze medals. The number exceeds the 17 medals they won in Kingston in 2022. Third is Trinidad and Tobago with 12 medals - two gold, four silver and six bronze medals while Guyana have seven medals - two gold, two silver and three bronze medals. Barbados rounds out the top five with four medals - two gold and two silver.

Earlier,  Jamaica won three of the four 4x100m relays and should have won all four had it not been a poor second exchange on the Boys U17 4x100m that opened the door for the Bahamas, who obliged by winning in 41.46 ahead of the Jamaicans, who clocked 41.63.

Grenada finished third in 41.95.

Prior to that race, Jamaica’s U17 Girls comfortably ran away with the gold medal in 45.36s, finishing ahead of the team from Trinidad and Tobago that clocked 46.18 for the silver medal. Bahamas, the home team, picked up the bronze when they finished in 46.43.

Jamaica’s U20 girls got things back on track with a dominating performance to win in 44.01 more than a second clear of Trinidad and Tobago, who took silver in 45.35 while the Bahamas ran 45.55 for the bronze medal.

The Bahamas team that featured the silver and bronze medallists in the 100m dash on Saturday were serious contenders to dethrone the Jamaicans and everything seemed to be going according to form for the home team until the final exchange.

Bahamian anchorman Carlos Brown got the baton with a three-metre lead on Jamaica’s anchor Deandre Daley, who driven by his disqualification in the semi-finals of the 100m and the injury to teammate Bouwahgjie Nkrumie, unleashed his blistering speed down the home stretch to catch and storm by Brown to the finish line.

Jamaica’s winning time was 39.68. The Bahamas took silver in 39.78 while Trinidad and Tobago finished third in 40.83.

They might have dominated proceedings in the sprint relays but Jamaica didn’t have things their own way in the 400m hurdles.

Jamaica’s Jody-Ann Daley won the Girls U17 event in 1:01.05 ahead of Darvinique Dean of the Bahamas who ran 1:02.50 for the silver medal. Daley’s compatriot was third in 1:02.61 to claim the bronze medal. It was a different story in the U20 event that saw a dominating performance from Michelle Smith from the Virgin Islands.

Smith, who won the U17 event in Jamaica in 2022, ran strong race from start to finishing, winning in 57.69 well clear of the Jamaican pair of Tonyan Beckford and Alliah Baker who ran 58.94 and 59.55 for second and third, respectively.

St Kitts and Nevis’ Akanye Samuel Francis upset the Jamaican pair of Deandre Gayle and Demario Bennett to win gold in the U17 Boys 400m hurdles in 54.14. Gayle ran 55.10 for the silver medal with Bennett clocking 55.27 for the bronze medal.

Jamaica got back to winning ways in the Boys U20 in the form of Roshawn Clarke who produced a dominant performance to win in 49.92 ahead of teammate Antonio Forbes, who clocked 51.72. Shimar Bain of the Bahamas ran 52.48 for the bronze medal.

Bahamas comprehensively won the inaugural staging of the mixed 4x400m relay, running away from the field to clock 3:24.92. In their wake was Grenada 3:27.22 and Jamaica 3:29.35.

Kaydean Johnson took gold in the 3000m steeplechase in commanding fashion powering away from the field in the final 200m to win in 10:41.11 leaving silver medalist Attoya Harvey of Guyana (10:45.74) in her wake.

Akaya Lightbourne of the Bahamas won the bronze medal with her time of 10:47.01.

Demetrie Meyer of Belize, who won gold in the 1500m on Saturday, added the 3000m gold to his collection on Sunday with a winning time of 9:08.56. Ejay George of Grenada won the silver medal in 9:36.82 with Love Joseph of the Turks and Caicos Islands winning bronze in a time of 9:37.46.

Ronaldo Anderson won another gold medal for Jamaica in the U17 Boys Shot Put. He set a mark of 15.52m to just get the better of Denzel Phillips of St Lucia who threw 15.17m Rueben Bain of the Bahamas threw 13.78m to claim the bronze medal.

Jamaica also won the Boys U17 triple jump as Euan Young soared out to 14.32m to claim the gold medal. Aaron Massiah of Barbados won the silver with a 13.93m effort while Ezekiel Saul of Guyana claimed the bronze with his jump of 13.53m.

Gerilin Barnes won gold for Antigua in the U17 Girls long jump. She soared out to a mark of 5.60m, a mere three centimetres clear of Jamaica's Sashana Johnson's 5.57m. The bronze medal was won by Hilaire Oceane Saint of Guadeloupe (5.54m).

Dominica’s Addison Alickson James threw 60.16m to win gold in the U17 Boys javelin. Antigua’s Maliek Francis hurled the implement 50.45m for the silver medal with Guadeloupe’s Tristan Carias winning bronze with his throw of 49.48m.

Guyana’s Anisha Gibbon, Jamaica’s Britannia Johnson and Cayman's Andrew Stone each won gold medals on Sunday’s morning session on day two of the 50^th Carifta Games being held in Nassau, Bahamas.

Nineteen-year-old Gibbons, the defending champion, threw 47.96m on her very first attempt to win the Women’s U20 javelin. Korann Corlet, 19, of French Guiana won the silver with her best throw of 45.32 while 18-year-old Vanessa Sawyer of the Bahamas took home the bronze medal with a throw of 43.37m.

It was a 1-2 finish for the defending champions Jamaica in the Women U20 shot put as 19-year-old Johnson established a winning mark of 14.54m. Her compatriot Britannie Johnson, also 19, won the silver medal with a throw of 13.74m.

The bronze medal went to St Lucia’s Joy Edward, 19, who put 13.53m to secure the final spot on the podium.

Meanwhile, Andrew Stone of the Cayman Islands produced a mark of 7.54m to win the U20 long jump. The 17-year-old Stone was 10cm better than Jamaica's Demario Prince who took the silver with his best jump of 7.44m, the same as Mateo Smith of the Bahamas, who was third as the Jamaica had a better series. Prince's second-best jump was 7.43m while Smith's was 7.33m. Prince's third-best effort was 7.37m to Smith's 7.33m.

World champion athletes Steven Gardiner and Shericka Jackson are among Caribbean headliners set to compete at the Miramar Invitational at the Ansin Sports Complex on Saturday.

Gardiner, who is making a return after missing the 2022 World Championships in Oregon with an inflamed tendon, will run the 200m against a line-up that includes Great Britain’s Zharnel Hughes and Botswana’s World U20 100m champion Letsile Tebogo.

The USA’s Kenny Bednarek will also compete in the half-lap sprint that is expected to be electric.

Meanwhile, Jackson, the reigning world 200m women’s champion, will take on a crack field in what will be her third 400m run for the season. She will line up against fellow Jamaicans, the Olympic finalist Stephenie-Ann McPherson, Janieve Russell and Charokee Young as well as American 400m hurdler Shamier Little and Aliya Adams.

World championships finalist Oblique Seville is among 22 sprinters listed for the 100m. The Jamaican prospect will take on compatriots Ackeem Blake, Andrew Hudson, Raheem Chambers, Oshane Bailey, and Michael Campbell for a lane in the finals.

Cejhae Green of Antigua and Barbuda, Ian Kerr of the Bahamas and Eric Harrison Jr of Trinidad and Tobago will also be aiming to make it into the finals. American veteran Mike Rodgers and current star Ronnie Baker will also be in contention.

Among the women, Briana Williams returns to her former training ground, hoping to make up for her poor performance over 200m at the recent Velocity Fest meet at the national stadium in Kingston. However, she will have her work cut out for her as she runs her first 100m this season.

A crack field has been assembled that includes the mercurial American Sha’Carri Richardson, compatriots Twanisha Terry, Teahna Daniels, Cambrea Sturgis, Melissa Jefferson and Javianne Oliver as well as Jamaicans Natasha Morrison, Jonielle Smith, Shockoria Wallace and Kashieka Cameron.

The 200m dash for women also promises to be intriguing with the likes of Caribbean stars World Championship 400m bronze medallist Sada Williams lining up against Anthonique Strachan of the Bahamas and Jamaica’s Natalliah Whyte.

The race will also include the supremely talented Abby Steiner, Tamari Davis and Kyra Jefferson.

Machel Cedenio lines up in the 400m against Jamaica’s Rusheen McDonald and Alonzo Russell of the Bahamas. They will represent Caribbean pride as they do battle with the USA’s Michael Cherry and Great Britain’s Matthew Hudson-Smith.

Shafiqua Maloney of St Vincent and the Grenadines will take up the USA’s Ajee Wilson over 800m while Rajay Hamilton goes in the men’s equivalent against Puerto Rico’s Ryan Sanchez.

BVI’s Kyron McMaster will take on Marvin Williams of Jamaica and Andre Colebrook of the Bahamas over the 400m hurdles while Orlando Bennett, Damion Thomas of Jamaica and Shane Brathwaite of Barbados will challenge the might of American Daniel Roberts in the 110m hurdles.

Amoi Brown of Jamaica faces a tough field of Tonea Marshall, Anna Cockrell and Gabby Cunningham in the 100m hurdles that also features Haitian talent Mulern Jean.

In the field events, the long jump for both men and women should provide solid entertainment as 2019 World Champion Tajay Gayle, who has been gradually making a return from a long-term knee injury has been included in a field that also has LaQuan Nairn of the Bahamas and Andwuelle Wright of Trinidad and Tobago.

They will have their hands full facing Japan’s Shoutarou Shiroyama.

The women’s event promises to be an evenly matched affair as Jamaica’s Chanice Porter and Barbados’ Akela Jones will match skills against the USA’s Tiffany Flynn and Taliyah Brooks.

Danniel Thomas-Dodd and Lloydricia Cameron will be aiming for podium spots in the shot put as they take on the likes of Adelaide Aquilla and Khayla Dawson of the USA.

More than 60 golfers will tee off on Saturday in the Jamaica Golf Association's two-day Easter Jamboree at the Upton Estates Golf and Country Club in Ocho Rios, Jamaica.

National amateur golf champion Oshae Haye leads a strong field of local golfers who will journey to his home course in St. Ann for the event. Three former national champions - William Knibbs, Zandre Roye and Dr. Mark Newnham – are expected to challenge Haye for top honours.  

"It is one of our qualifying events where participants get points towards the order of merit which allows them to try out for a national team. We are looking forward to an exciting weekend of golf" said Jamaica Golf Association President Jodi Munn-Barrow, who will be the sole representative in the Ladies 0-6 category.

Seven other women will play in the 13 and over handicap category.

The biggest category of golfers will compete in the Men Super Seniors 0-12 section which has 19 competitors including Peter Chin and Wayne Chai Chong as well as national representatives Teddy Alexander, Metry Seaga and Mike Gleichman.

Four men will play in the Masters.

There will also be several junior players in the 18 and Under, 14-15 and 11-13 age groups, who will be looking to sharpen their skills for the Caribbean Junior Amateur Golf Championship scheduled for July in the Cayman Islands.

Jamaican fitness athlete Deidre Lewis has rebounded from a two-year anti-doping suspension, to win her Pro Card following an outstanding showing at the Mr and Miss America IFBB Cup in Lima, Peru, last weekend.

During the competition that ran from April 1-2, Lewis won the Bikini Senior Up to 160cm Class over Ambar Canas of Venezuela, Aminta Jeanette Lopez Ramirez of El Salvador, Vivian Isabel Buella Guevara of Peru, Pamela Sosa of Guatemala, Alejandra Milargros Chang Yui of Peru and Helen Orellana of Chile.

She also won the Overall Bikini Fitness title over Costa Rica’s Darla Gomez Bolanos and El Salvador’s Aminta Jeanette Lopez Ramirez.

The success means that Lewis would finally earn her Pro Card.

“I am very happy with my success. It has been long overdue,” an elated Lewis told Sportsmax.TV after returning home earlier this week.

“I was delayed but never denied. Delayed with entering shows previously and coming very close to earning the card and didn’t get it and second, the suspension for Zeranol, which didn’t give me any advantage and is a naturally occurring substance that comes from food and I had to stay away from the stage,” she said.

“So, I am here once my suspension was up I hit the ground running because I just wanted to get back on the stage.”

She explained that during her time off, she worked to get her body in peak condition with the goal of earning her Pro Card.

“I started operating like a pro. I trained like a professional and now I am a professional,” she said.

“I won my height class first and I was so overwhelmed because it was a really tight show. It was really great and I had the muscles that they were looking for on the day so I am very happy with this win.”

Lewis, who intends to make her professional debut at the Roger Boyce Classic in Barbados from June 1-4 depending on if she can get sponsored, said the success has helped put her mind at ease and boosted her self-belief.

“It has made me content, very content and happy. Actually, happy is an understatement. I am overwhelmed, elated because I have waited so long to come back to the stage it, it hurt my spirit to be away from the stage so I am happy I could have come back and come back with a bang,” she said.

“I am more confident in my abilities now. I have changed my mindset upon entering the competition because before I was more nervous, doubting my abilities. I have also revamped how I approach competition. It is important to have confidence on the stage and that oozed out of me on the stage and that was why I was triumphant.”

She reveals, however, that she remains rankled by the suspension that robbed her of two years in the sport.

“I am still not over it, 100 per cent,” she said.

“I am just disheartened that the substance (Zeranol), it was a minute amount, it is a naturally occurring substance. The expert said that this was not something that I took and I still had to serve a suspension for that just because I simply could not tell them where it came from,” she said while suggesting that changes need to be made to some of the rules governing doping.

“I think they need to change those rules in cases like these when it was not something I took deliberately. I am still disheartened by it but I am looking forward from all of it.”

As he gets ready to run his second 100m this season at the Miramar South Florida Invitational in Florida this weekend, 2022 World Championship finalist Oblique Seville reveals he does not feel pressured by public expectations with his only focus being running faster than his personal best of 9.86 this season.

Jamaican fans spoiled by Usain Bolt, who won three consecutive 100 and 200m titles at the Olympics between 2008 and 2016 and a similar number of gold medals at the World Championships in 2009, 2013 and 2015 in both sprints, have been frustrated by the island’s seemingly inability to find someone to fill his massive shoes.

Seville, who made it to the semi-finals of the Tokyo Olympics and the finals of last year’s World Championships, has teased the Jamaican fan based about his prospects for the future. The former Calabar High School sprinter, who while at the Jamaica Pegasus on Tuesday was named among the athletes confirmed for the 2023 Racers Grand Prix in Kingston on June 3, told Sportsmax.TV, public expectations come with the territory.

“When you put yourself at a certain level, you have to expect the expectations from the people. You have to expect the expectations because you are the one who put yourself in that position so it’s just for you to fulfill the best you can be and the best version of yourself,” he said.

Seville, who turned 22 in March, said he is now healthy having overcome an injury that had impacted his preparations and is looking forward to the season ahead. He opened his season with a 60m dash running 6.42 at the Gibson/McCook Relays in February and is now working on being better than ever.

“Racers Grand Prix is preparation for the National trials. The little niggle that I had before I ran at the Gibson/McCook Relays, was a little back issue. I have recovered from it and going forward this season, I want to go under 9.86 (his personal best), that’s my aim for now and I’ll take it from there,” he said.

After finishing just outside the medals in the 100m finals at the 2022 World Championships in Oregon, Seville said he came away with very important lessons that will make him a better sprinter when going up against the world’s best.

“The World Championship finals taught me a lot of things about what I should work on this season,” he said. “My biggest downfall was my start and I am now working on it. I will take my time and coach (Glen Mills) has been patient with me so I will see what I can do this season.”

Several Jamaicans have been listed for the preliminary rounds of the 100m on Saturday, including Ackeem Blake, Michael Campbell, Andrew Hudson and Oshane Bailey. The meet has also attracted Cejhae Green of Antigua and Barbuda, Eric Harrison Jr of Trinidad and Tobago and Ian Kerr of the Bahamas.

Alana Reid believes her performance at the 2023 ISSA GraceKennedy Boys and Girls Championships that concluded on Saturday, April 1, was the best possible way to end her high glittering school career.

Reid, who turned 18 in January, completed the sprint treble at Champs, winning the 100m in a record 10.92 and the 200m in 23.08 before leading Hydel High School to victory in the 4x100m relay. She became the first female high school athlete to break 11 seconds in the blue-riband sprint at the 113-year-old Jamaican high school championships while shattering the record of 11.13 that was held by sprint icon Veronica Campbell-Brown since 2001.

Speaking with Sportsmax.TV on Monday while the school celebrated it’s first-ever title at the championships, Reid said it was good to cap her high-school career the same way it began.

“In Class IV I won both the 100 and the 200m so coming back this year and repeating that is something that I have to be proud of,” she said.

“My coach has been there for me and my parents every step of the way, not to mention my teammates, so I just had to leave my mark and that’s what I did and I am pleased with my performance.”

Reid was not even born when Veronica Campbell-Brown set the previous record that had stood for more than two decades. She said a lot of hard work went into the performance last week Wednesday night that stunned the crowd at the National Stadium in Kingston.

“It has been sleepless nights, waking at 5:30 every morning for training. I had days when I felt like giving up but I had to look at the brighter things and know that God gives his battles to his strongest soldiers. So it was just for me to position myself to do what I know I am capable of doing and I did just that and I am honestly pleased with everything that came off,” she said.

In 2022, pundits and fans of Champs had anticipated that the clash between Reid’s former teammate Brianna Lyston, who is now at Louisiana State University (LSU) and World U20 Champion Tina Clayton, would have produced the first sub-11 time for girls at Champs.

However, the environmental conditions which were ideal before that race, suddenly changed and had the two high school stars running into a stiff headwind that negatively impacted their times. Notwithstanding, Reid said she felt she could do what Lyston and Clayton failed to do.

“When I was round the back (Stadium East), I held up 10 fingers (to Coach Corey Bennett) and he was like ‘I know you can do it’, so when I was running and I looked at the clock and saw 10.90, I’m like I know I could do it,” she said.

“It really gave me the drive to look on the brighter side of things and it’s just for me to continue working hard to improve that time.”

With several universities in the United States offering track scholarships, Reid will be studying Business Management at the University of Oregon this coming fall. The choice, she said, was simple.

“It feels like home. “It’s like a family. I know not many Jamaicans are there but it’s a place that feels like I am accepted and where I can grow and improve myself both in education and track and field,” she said.

“So, It’s just for me to go there and position myself to be the best there and know that anything I believe I can achieve.”

The ability to overcome adversity, hard work and a commitment to excellence led Hydel High School to their first-ever title at the 2023 ISSA GraceKennedy Boys and Girls Championships that concluded at the National Stadium in Kingston on Saturday, April 1.

After five days of intense competition, the Ferry-based academic institution scored 279 points to dethrone eight-time defending champion Edwin Allen by just two points.

As the team celebrated on Monday, Hydel High’s head girl and track team captain Oneika McAnnuff, delivered an emotional and inspiring speech to her fellow students that encapsulated the essence of the spirit that galvanized the 34-member team and propelled them to the historic achievement.

“The road to this victory was really bitter-sweet. In 2019, we lost champs by a mere seven points. It was a gut-wrenching feeling knowing all the hard work we had put in,” said McAnnuff, who will depart Hydel for the University of Kentucky this summer.

“With the feeling coming so close to the victory that year sparked something among the team and for 2020 we worked tirelessly.”

That work was in vain as the onset of the pandemic caused Champs to be cancelled in 2020, which was a significant blow to the school and its athletes.

“The Covid-19 virus led to all sporting events being canceled for that year. 2021 was by far the hardest year for us both as a team and a school,” she said, adding that despite the setback they managed to rise above it all.

“After finally recovering from the damage Covid-19 had done to us something tragic happened. Our school’s head office caught fire and we lost everything inside. And as you can see we’re still trying to recover from those damages.

“2022 was a spectacular year for our track team we broke a total of five records at Champs that year.  We won five of six hurdles races (and) won the 4x4 for the fifth consecutive year.

“We had six persons on the national CARIFTA team and six persons on the World U20 team that went to Cali, Colombia. And our very own Mr. Corey Bennett was the head coach of both teams.

“Our 4x400m quartet of Alliah Baker, Oneika McAnnuff, Kerrica Hill and Brianna Lyston also went on to break the Penn Relays record that was held by Garriel White, Shiann Salmon, Ronesha and Charokee Young also of Hydel. So regardless of the fact that we placed second at Boys and Girls champs we accomplished a lot as a team.”

The hard work and sacrifice finally paid off in 2023 said McAnnuff, who won the 400m hurdles and won silver in the 400m during the championships.

“Now, many persons might ask what we did differently this year? Well the answer is found in Isaiah 40:31 that says, ‘But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint. We have been faithful and putting in all the work,” she said.

“Our coach has never put the pressure on us that we must win Champs but he believes that we must produce quality performances and we did just that. I must say the entire team did an excellent job and every single person that gave a point it made a difference.”

McAnnuff singled out one particular teammate, whose performance characterized the team’s resilience in the race to the title against the Edwin Allen juggernaut.

“I must talk to the performance of the championship from Kaydean Johnson. While competing in the 2000m steeplechase Kaydean fell over the last barrier and was passed by her competitor but instead of staying down she rises back up and sprinted to the line to claim victory for the team…that is the type of passion and guts that it took for us to take this championship,” she said.

“Many persons doubted our abilities even we ourselves sometimes felt a bit unsure but the unwavering support of all our coaches and support staff kept us grounded. It has been a long time coming and this victory just goes to show that delayed does not mean denied.”

Express Canteen, for the second year running, will be donating JMD$250,000 to help send Hydel to the 2023 Penn Relays set to run off from April 27-29. Hydel is sending an eight-member team to the relays this year.

Chairman of Express Canteen Ryan Foster made the announcement on Monday as Hydel High School celebrated their first title at ISSA GraceKennedy Boys and Girls Championships that concluded on Saturday, April 1.

In 2022, Hydel’s head coach Corey Bennett, revealed that the school faced financial challenges and was forced to cut members of the team they had planned to send to the Relays in Philadelphia. Express Canteen responded to the call for help and donated JMD$250,000 towards the venture.

At the celebrations at the school grounds in Ferry, St Catherine on Monday, company’s chairman Ryan Foster said they will be doing the same in 2023.

"Last year, Corey came to me for assistance to get the girls to the Penn Relays as there was an immediate shortfall being experienced. Most naturally, Express Canteen intervened and assisted them to attend the games,” said Foster, who is also Chairman of the Board of the Hydel Group of Schools.

“This year the need still exists and we are on board again to make this dream possible. My motto is "it is not how big you are as a company but is how big of a sacrifice you can make to make another person’s life better.

“The joy does not come in financial rewards but it is the many blessings that I have received over the course of my business. The Penn Relays is a staple and I believe Express Canteen will continue to support Hydel Girls, one of our key partners, to continue to excel. The support this year is $250,000."

For his part, Bennett, who is also Vice President of the Hydel Group of Schools, expressed his gratitude for the continued support.

“It is really special to get sponsorship from Express Canteen and it has come at such a good time when we try to expose our young athletes to international competition,” he said.

“It is a very timely gift to us because without these contributions we have no way to attending the Penn Relays and we are just thankful to Express Canteen that continues to invest in Jamaica’s youth through their sponsorship.”

Last year, Hydel High School broke their own Penn Relays record in the high school girls 4x400m relays when they set a time of 3:32.77. In doing so, they broke the record of 3:33.99 set in 2017.

In 2010, Dr. Walton Small, in his first year as principal at Wolmer’s High School for Boys’ presided over proceedings when they celebrated their first hold on the Mortimer Geddes Trophy in 100 years as boys’ champions of the ISSA GraceKennedy Boys and Girls Championships.

Fast-forward 13 years, and Dr Small, in his first year as principal of Hydel High School, is celebrating once again. The school which is celebrating its 30^th anniversary won their first ever girls’ title at the 113-year-old high school championships.

Does he see himself as a sort of lucky charm?

Perhaps not, but he believes Hydel winning at the five-day athletics championships that concluded on Saturday, was the result of everyone playing their part.

“I am not sure (he is a lucky charm) but for me, my role as an educator whether it was at Wolmer’s or at Hydel, is of father, motivator,” he said as the school celebrated at its Ferry campus in St Catherine, the historic win after dethroning eight-time defending champions Edwin Allen by a mere two points – 279 to 277.

“That is my role to make them feel special; tell them at devotion, let them dance at devotion. I brought Mr (Coach Corey) Bennett there. I said come and dance for them at devotion so that they can feel relaxed and comfortable. So, I think that our role is to make sure they are good, make sure their assignments are done.

“We played our part and left the important part to the track team. They have done something special this year, the 30^th anniversary.”

The timing of the victory, he said, was significant as he believes it will bring attention to the school’s desperate needs.

“I think it (the championship) was to bring attention to us. The school has been ravaged by fire, by the pandemic. We need serious support, we need attention; Corporate Jamaica and government needs to come in and assist us,” he said explaining that Hydel has so much to offer.

“This can be a one-stop shop for track and field and quality academic education because we are balancing sports.

“I have no doubt that this is going to help us. We can’t even manage any influx of athletes now because we do not have the proper facilities to accommodate them. We have the buildings but we need to retro-fit them. Once we get this help we can accommodate as many students as possible because we have a lot of buildings here,” said Dr Small who was appointed principal in September 2022.

Early on in the proceedings on Monday, the celebrations began under the blazing mid-morning sun when members of the victorious track team led the excited student population in a march onto the campus to the sound of music and blaring vuvuzelas.

Coach Corey Bennett came dancing once more, which raised the intensity of the cheers seemingly ten-fold. He danced on stage with his athletes before delivering an inspirational speech about the early days of Hydel track and field, how it has grown and developed over the last decade despite lingering doubts about the school’s ability to win a championship.  A coach, who is no longer in the sport “told me I was wasting my time,” he said.

He said Hydel sent a four-member team to their first ever Champs in 2010 when they finished 11^th. A few years later they were fifth and after a few years of coming close, they have finally delivered.

He ended with a recital of the Lord’s Prayer with the audience joining in before shouting “God is good! God is good!”

CEO and President of GraceKennedy Financial Group, Grace Burnett, hailed the athletes for the tremendous achievement while singling out the performance of Kaydeen Johnson, who fell at the final barrier of the 2000m steeplechase but still managed to rise and go on to win. Johnson also won the 3000m.

Burnett said that what happened in the steeplechase was inspirational.

“Kaydeen fell during the steeplechase, she got up and she ran and she won,” she said to cheers and blaring vuvuzelas. “Sometimes in life things knock you down. You can stay lying down or you can get up, you can put your heart into it and still win.”

 She also singled out “superstar” Alana Reid who won three gold medals – the 100m in a new record of 10.92, the 200m and the 4x100m relay, team captain Oneika McAnnuff, who won the 400m hurdles and was second in the 400m, whom she described as a true leader.

She also mentioned Jody-Ann Daley who won the Class II 400m and Nastassia Fletcher, who took home gold in the Class III one lap race.

Hydel Board Chairman Ryan Foster also praised the team and shed light on the process of how the board assembled a team of administrators that helped give Hydel the push to create history in Jamaica’s high school track and field.

An expired Therapeutic Use Exemption certificate has caused Trinidad and Tobago long jumper Tyra Gittens to accept a six-month ban for the unintentional use of a prohibited substance. The ban took effect from September 26, 2022 and any results in competition since June 26, 2022, have been wiped from her record, which means she loses her results from the 2022 World Championships in Eugene, Oregon and Commonwealth Games in Birmingham England.

The ban has since expired which means she is now free to train and compete.

World Athletics’ Athletics Integrity United (AIU) ruled on Monday that the athlete was ineligible for a person of six months after a sample she provided in June 2022 was found to contain methylphenidate/ritalinic acid, a prohibited substance that is an ingredient of the medication she takes for ADHD.

However, at the time the sample was taken, Gittens’ Therapeutic Use Exemption (TUE) had expired. The AIU said it accepts that the athlete had not realized that her previous TUE had expired by the time that the first sample was taken at the national Trinidad and Tobago championships on June 26, 2022.

“She was not advised that the TTO Sample was positive for methylphenidate, or that her TUE had expired for this purpose, until November 2022, after the sample collected from her at the World Championships on July 23, 2022,” the AIU said adding that they also accept that Gittens had no information at the time of her second World Athletics sample that her TUE application was incomplete.

“The AIU also accepts that the medication was used for legitimate medical reasons and the athlete did not intend to cheat. Accordingly, the AIU accepts that the violation was not ‘intentional’.”

Gittens, who turned pro just last week, addressed the development on her Instagram on Monday stating that, “My Therapeutic Use Exemption (TUE) for taking ADHD medication was not approved in time for the World Championships last summer, which caused me to test positive for methylphenidate.

“Even though I have taken the same medication for years and had the same TUE for the Tokyo Olympics, I did not complete the application correctly. To put this behind me, my team and I accepted a six-month suspension backdated to Sept(ember) 25, which means the period of ineligibility is already served, and I can proceed with my season. During that time, I learned so much more about myself, my priorities, and my goals.”

She also revealed that this was not the only challenge she had to face in the last year.

“The last year and a half was one of the most challenging times of my life. First my transfer, it was a huge leap of faith and it extremely last minute. It was complicated learning a new event, having a new coach, new training schedules, new programs, living in a new city, and being in a new environment,” she said.

“It was an extremely confusing and overwhelming time and it led me to not trust myself and it showed in my performance last year.

“Secondly, earlier that year I lost my grandmother to diabetes. In August my aunt lost her battle with breast cancer, two weeks later my last grandmother passed away. Losing those amazing women was extremely heartbreaking. They were fighters and even though it was tough moving on, their stories motivated me to continue my fight as well.”

She revealed that these trials have made her stronger and better prepared for anything that life will throw at her.

“I am a different woman because of last year’s trials and tribulations. It has made me stronger, more trusting of myself, happier, and more at peace with my reality,” she said.

“I’m so thankful for the people who were behind me during this extremely lonely time of my life. Now it’s time to get back to work and continue my journey of turning my dreams into reality.”

 Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce said she felt ‘compelled’ to defend her family’s honour when against her better judgement and her coach’s advice she entered the parents’ race at her son Zyon’s school sports day last week Friday.

A video of the fastest mommy on the planet decimating other mommies in a dash went viral and was eventually published on global online platforms including the BBC, Sky Sports and Sportsbible.

But why would a woman considered the best 100m female sprinter of all time, risk possible injury by competing in an inconsequential event even as she prepares to win a record-extending sixth 100m world title in Budapest in five months?

She explained that after watching her son and husband fall short, she was ‘overwhelmed’ by competitive spirit that helped propel her to two Olympic 100m gold medals, a record five world titles and to becoming the second-fastest woman alive.

 “I feel like I have been waiting all my life for this moment,” she joked on Sunday in a post on Instagram that included a video that chronicled the events of last Friday.

“I initially had no intention of running in the parents’ race – even my coach advised me not to run but my teammates weren’t doing so hot.

“Zyon ran his first race and fell, He tried again and got bronze in the obstacle race. So, I sent Jason (her husband) to handle business and bring home gold in the male parent race, but that didn’t go so well either.”

It was against that background that she decided to step in and right the wrongs.

“And, as an Olympian,” she continued, “it just didn’t make sense for us to leave without bringing home a single piece of gold, so I decided to race.

“We ended up getting two bronze medals…a participation medal and a first-place medal in the women’s parent race to redeem the Pryce’s family name. All in all, I’m so proud of my son and happy enjoyed sports day.”