Eastern Champs in spotlight at Stadium
THE EASTERN Athletics Championships, one of four regional meets to help qualify athletes for next month’s ISSA/ GraceKennedy Boys and Girls’ Athletics Championships (Champs), will get under way at the National Stadium today at 8:30 a.m.
The top two finishers in each event at the two-day meet will get automatic qualification to Champs while defending champions St Mary High will be hoping to make it eight wins in a row. Last year, the Dwayne Williams-coached team topped the girls with a whopping 447 points while their boys’ team ended second with 235, behind Titchfield High on 276.
Today, there will be 15 field event finals, eight girls and seven boys. On the track, the 1500m in all classes will be straight finals. There will be preliminary rounds in the 100m, 200m, 400m , 800m, 4x100m, 4x400m and Sprint Medley relays.
St Mary High will be hoping that the likes of Alexia Walker in Class One 200m and 400m along with Ryana Dennis in the 400m will lead the way among the girls. In Class Two, their top prospects are Shaggay Sheppy and Rickayla Bailey in the 100m and Tianna Davidson in the 400m. In Class Three, they will pin their hopes on Kevina Bourne, one the top 400m athletes this season.
Among the boys, St Mary High will be hoping that last year’s double winner in the Class Three 400 and 800m, Rasheed Grant, carries that good form into his first year in Class Two.
Titchfield’s Class One sprinter, Chevauna Grant, who clocked a season’s best 12.04 seconds at the Youngster Goldsmith Classics, will be hoping to go much faster in the event. She is also down to contest the 200m, where she has a 2024 best of 25.49.
On the male side, Titchfield should get quality points from Shevan Jarrett in Class One 800m and Kevon Morgan in the 1500m. In Class Two, they will have Anthony Dillon attempting the 800m-1500m double. They are very strong in Class Three as Rhandrae Simpson in the 100m, Jeremiah McMurrine in the 800m, along with Jermaine Swaby are expected to give them quality points.
Kenrick Sharpe of St Mary Technical is favoured to take the Class One sprint double following season’s best times of 10.78 and 21.89 over the 100m and 200m, respectively.
The regional meets will continue this weekend with the Corporate Area Development Meet and the Western Championships. The former will be held on Friday and Saturday at the Ashenheim Stadium, Jamaica College. The latter will be over three days, starting on Thursday, at St Elizabeth Technical High.