Outstanding performances at McKenley-Wint Classic
IT WAS a carnival affair at Calabar High School on Saturday as hundreds of fans turned up to witness the second staging of the McKenley-Wint Classic, and they were not disappointed after being treated with excellent performances.
Host team Calabar and their rivals, Kingston College (KC), were the most impressive among the males, while Hydel continued their rise in track and field among the females with another strong showing.
Led by the likes of Ugandan Aryamana Rodgers and twin brothers Gianni and Giovouni Henry in the middle distances, Davion Williams in the hurdles and Nemoy Cockett in the throws, KC came out with bragging rights and made an early statement ahead of Champs. Like he has been doing all season, Rodgers again won convincingly, destroying the field in his 1,500m heat in 4:02.38 for the fastest time among Class Two boys in the event. Calabar ‘s Kevroy Benson, 4:06.94, and Kimarley Farquharson, 4:06.97, who both won their heats, finished second and third overall.
It was a brother show in the Class Three event as both Gianna and Giovouni Henry won their heats comfortably in 4:24.49 and 4:24.97, respectively, for the top-two times in the class with their teammate Tajah Taffy securing a clean sweep of the top spots for the North Street-based team, finishing third overall in 4:38.06.
With the Inter-Secondary Schools Sports Association making it official that the 400m hurdles Class Two event will be contested at Champs this year, Williams greeted the news in fine style, giving KC a big win here, capturing the event in 56.30 seconds, ahead of Calabar’ s Adam Whitelocke, Britney Brown (1847) of The Queen’s School pulls away from her competitors on her way to winning the girls Class Two 400m heat at the McKenley-Wint Classic at Calabar High School yesterday.
58.26, with KC’s Jordan Forrest taking third in 58.54 seconds.
Cockett scored a double win in the throws in Class Two. He first took the shot put with 14.49m, just edging Cornwall’s Nathan Reid, 14.44m, with KC’s Ralford Mullins getting third with 12.17m. Cockett returned to win the discus with 46.35 metres over Belair’s Kyode Clarke, 45.42m, and Calabar’s Devon Mitchell, 40.84m.
GOOD SHOWING
Despite resting the likes of Christopher Taylor, Dejour Russell and Akeem Francis, it was a good showing for the home team, especially in the 400m. Anthony Carpenter led the way in Class One after producing the fastest time of the day to win his heat in 47.45 seconds. KC’s Dashawn Morrison was second overall with 48.59, with Vere Technical’s Ramon Lindo third best in 48.75 seconds.
Hydel was the most dominant female team, winning most of the events on the day, with Shian Salmon leading the way with a double. After copping the girls Open 400m hurdles in 1:00.78, she returned later to win the Class Two high jump with a clearance of 1.75m.
Campion College and Immaculate both had big performances in the 100m. Campion’s Krystal Sloley was the best among Class Three girls, stopping the clock at 11.97 seconds. Immaculate’s Shaunelle Wallace was top in Class Two in 11.84 seconds.
In Olympic Development events Mario Forsythe and Ricardo Cunningham led the way in the 400m and 800m for the males. Forsythe won the one-lap event in 48.91 seconds ahead of teammate Wayne McPherson, 49.52 seconds, with Mico’s LawayneThomas third on 49.67 seconds.
Cunningham took home the 800m in 1:52.73 ahead of Javon Francis, 1:54.08, and KC’s Kristoffe Darby, 1:54.13.