Photo: The Jamaican contingent to the CAC Age Group Championships in Trinidad and Tobago celebrates their historic win at the games.
A small contingent of athletes led by head coach Grace Bourah created history when they took Jamaica to their first ever CAC Age Championships win in Trinidad and Tobago on the weekend. With all eyes on the IAAF World Youth Championships in Cali Columbia and the Pan American Games in Canada, the youngsters got the job done almost unnoticed, thanks largely, to the outstanding performances of the boys.
Jamaica won the Boys 11-12 category with a 1-2 performance from Terrique Stennett and Mekale Gordon. Stennett who broke the 100m and 200m Class 1 Boys records at the JISA Prep Schools Track and Field Championships in May, broke the 60m and long jump records, while Gordon who was the overall champion boys at those same championships came close to breaking the high jump record in Trinidad. Jamaica also won the Boys 13-14 category led by the pair of Shacquille Lowe (Kingston College) and Antonio Watson (Petersfield).
The girls performed creditably well, finishing third in the 13-14 category and fifth in the 11-12 category. The mixed relay team in the 11-12 category, comprising Woizero Richards, Kaylea-Ashley McKenzie, Gordon and Stennett won gold, while the 13-14 mixed relay team won silver.
Bourah was not surprised by the win, “I wasn’t surprised by the performance of the athletes. They all worked hard and stuck to the task.”
She also credited teamwork to their success saying, “They had faith in each other and they were very supportive of each other and they were fearless in competition. We give thanks for all the blessings, the good and the bad.”
The team returns to the island on Tuesday afternoon with a total medal haul of 10 Gold and 7 Silver medals, the largest in the country’s history.
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