Photo: Chadayne Walker anchoring Kingston College to victory in the Class One Boys 4x200m at last year’s Gibson-McCook Relays.
The Gibson-McCook Relays now steps into its “Ruby” year of existence and fans can expect a pleatra of high quality “gifts” through performances set to be unleashed in the 13 championship events, plus other individual events.
The 40th renewal of the event is set for Saturday, February 27, at the National Stadium, beginning at 8:30 am with the heats of the 4x400m Open for high school boys to be followed by the 4x400m relays for high school girls. The mile races will close the days proceeding at 9:30 pm.
An epic match up should come forth in the 4x100m High School Boys Class One Championship event, with likes of Jamaica College, Kingston College, St. Jago high and Calabar High coming face to face.
Holmwood Technical Girls, looking to maintain their unbeaten run this season, should get their sternest test yet from St Jago High in the 4x100m High School Girls Class One events. The Boys Class Two 4x100m Championship is one of the more eagerly anticipated race, with Calabar High set to combine their quartet of Christopher Taylor, Dejour Russell, Michael Stephens and Tyreke Wilson for a super run on Saturday evening.
The Girls Class Two, 4x100m Championship race will see the St Jago High unit with the likes of Kimone Shaw and Shaniel English, seeking to topple a high riding Edwin Allen unit led by Shellece Clarke.
The Girls Class Three and Four are Edwin Allen’s races to lose, based on current season form.
The Boys equivalent should set the cats amongst the pigeons and provide the desired answers for the fans
Other events on the cards are the three new championship events, the 4×200 metres Open for Girls and the 4x200m for Classes One and Two boys.
The Boys and Girls High School 4x800m Open should provide a sweet thrill for fans with the STETHS Boys unit versus St jago and Holmwood Technical in the boys match up.
The sprint medley races for High schools are on the cards as well.
The Singer sponsored 4X100m Institution Men’s Championship race should see a rematch with Usain Bolt’s Racers team, up against University of Technology, the team that defeated them last year.
The MVP and Sprint Tech teams should make for a cracker jack field. MVP will be the ones to watch as their team involving Shelly Ann Fraser-Pryce and Elaine Thompson should be hard to fend off.
The 4x400m Institution for Women’s and Men’s Championship race looks to be a wire to wire battle between the GC Foster and UTECH college teams on the male side, while the female Sprint Tech team should be the target team.
The individual events to be contested are long and high jump open for women; pole vault open for men, mile run for male and female, men’s and women’s 100m and 400m races.
Speaking at the event launch a few weeks ago, the Chairman of the organizing committee Professor Rainford Wilks expressed how happy they are for the gesture of the numerous sponsors who are helping to raise the calibre of the local relay carnival.
“The organising committee is extremely grateful to our sponsors who have remained loyal to us despite the difficulties of the current economic climate. We thank sincerely those sponsors who have supported us for many years, but were unable to do so this year, and we hope that they will be able to re-join us in the future,” Wilks noted.
The event winners will receive souvenir watches in addition to their medals and other gifts from the respective sponsors.
An estimated 4,000 athletes are expected to participate in this year’s event.
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