Wins for Dacres, Russell, McPherson
Jamaica registered three victories on day one of the inaugural Athletics World Cup in London and are now sitting in fourth position with 77 points in the eight-team points table.
Janieve Russell, Fedrick Dacres and Stephenie Ann McPherson scored maximum points for the black, green, and gold in their respective events.
Russell won the women’s 400m hurdles comfortably in 55.10 seconds.
“I am very pleased. My main objective was to get the valuable points my country needs, because I have the 4x400m later so I conserved energy,” Russell said after the race.
Dacres, who has been dominant all season in the discus throw, also won his event comfortably. But the Calabar High past student was not pleased with his performance.
“I am not pleased at all because I thought I could have thrown much better. But that’s life, it is a work in progress,” Dacres said of his 65.32m, effort.
Stephenie McPherson cruised victory in 50.98 seconds to capture the women’s 400m. The
29- year-old and Russell later teamed up with Tiffany James and Christine Day to mine silver in the women’s 4x400m in 3:24.29. McPherson, closing like a runaway train, almost edged out the Americans, who won by a 100th of a second (3:24.28).
Elaine Thompson, the Olympic sprint-double champion, had to settle for second in the women’s 100m after American Ashley Henderson blasted out of the blocks to register the first big win of her career in 11.07 seconds. Thompson, who was 200th of a second slower, has had problems with her starts all season after suffering an injury to her Achilles tendon a year ago.
Commonwealth champion Ronald Levy, was also beaten into second in the 110m hurdles by French athlete Pascal LagardeMartinot, who stopped the clock at 13.22 seconds. Levy, who registered 13.30, was not pleased with his performance.
“It was disappointing. Very disappointing, but it was nice competing here again. The last time I came, I got injured,” Levy said about sustaining an injury at the IAAF World Athletics Championships last year in the Queen Elizabeth Stadium.
The USA lead the points standing with 109 points while France hold the number two position with 85. Jamaica and Poland are on 77 points each but the Europeans are ahead because they have registered more victories on the day. The meet continues today at noon (Ja time).