All is set for what is expected to be another exciting Inter-Secondary Schools Sports Association (ISSA)/Grace Kennedy Boys and Girls Athletics Championships beginning today inside the National Stadium.
The 107th staging of this prestigious event will see Calabar High and Edwin Allen High try to defend their respective boys’ and girls’ titles during five days of grueling action as over 100 schools try to take away their titles.
Edwin Allen are expected to cruise in the girls section as their powerful squad is laced with talent from Class 4 through to Class 1 and they are expected to resist the challenge from former champions Holmwood Technical, the precocious Hydel High and their Clarendon based neighbours, Vere Technical.
One of the most talked about female athletes heading into champs is the very talented Kevona Davis who is favourite to capture the Class 3 Girls sprint double for the defending champions. She has been impressive all season and may find herself running against the clock more than her opponents.
The boys section of champs will not be as easy to predict and the defending champions Calabar will be pushed all the way from their perennial rivals Kingston College. Calabar has won the last five championships and are desperate to make it “Six Love” over their opponents.
On the contrary, Kingston College has looked good at the various pre-season meets in which they have competed, prompting a number of pundits to give them the edge heading into Champs. KC lost a bitter battle by 15 points in 2015, before being blown away by more than 30 points last year. Their coach, Neil Harrison, insists that the boys are prepared to go all the way this season and has managed his squad with care, in order to be ready to end the Calabar stranglehold on the Mortimer Geddes Trophy.
But the Lions will not give up their crown without a fight and led by their star quarter miler, Christopher Taylor are brimming with confidence. While no finals will be contested on day one, the tone is expected to be set as a number of key matchups will highly the shortened first day. Action begins at 1:00pm with the Long Jump for Class One Boys and 70m hurdles for Class 4 Girls, and ends with the first round of the Boys 2000m Steeplechase Open at 9:15pm.
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