With both defending champions at the ISSA/Grace Kennedy Boys & Girls Athletics Championships leading by over 30 points heading into the final day of championships, it seems clear that they will both coast to victory and defending their respective titles at the end of it all today.
Reigning boys champions Calabar on 161 points leads former champions Kingston College who have 127 points by 34 while reigning girls champions, Edwin Allen who have 148 points after 20 events scored lead Holmwood Technical who have 109 points by 39.
On another exciting day of track and field at the National Stadium the records tumbled with the sensational Kevona Davis breaking the Class 2 Girls 100m record twice in one day. She nonchalantly broke the record held by Kimone Shaw of St. Jago High of 11.40 when she strolled to 11.35 in the semis before returning to power home to victory in 11.16 in the final.
But before Davis had broken her own record, there were two athletes that went under the Class 3 Boys 100m record as Kingston College finished first and second in the event. Bouwahjgie Nkrumie upset the favourite and his teammate Adrian Kerr to win gold in 10.79s erasing the old mark of 10.85 held by Jhevaughn Mattherson of Kingston College. Kerr ‘s new personal best of 10.81 means he has to second for silver for a second time in the event. David Lynch of Calabar High was third in 11.08.
The other record to go in the sprints was the Class 2 Boys 100m of 10.29 held by Raheem Chambers of St. Jago High when STETHS speedster Sachin Dennis destroyed the old record in a sensational display. The defending champion in the event stopped the clock at 11.20 which turned out to be faster than the Class One Boys event that soon followed. Terrique Stennett of Kingston College was second in 10.37 and Conroy Jones of STETHS was third in 10.52.
Hydel High girls’ captain, Shiann Salmon, has had one thing on her mind all season and that is to break the Girls 400m Hurdles Open record. Having prepared will in a dominating season, the final year athlete delivered in fine style as she produced a late burst in the home stretch to overhaul Sanique Walker of Vere Technical to win in 55.78 and claim her first gold in the event. Walker took the silver in 58.03 while Moisha Barnes of Edwin Allen was third in 58.63. The old record of 55.81 was held by World Championship bronze medalist Ristananna Tracey since 2011.
The emergence of Rovane Williams from Rhodes Hall at the Digicel Grand Prix final where he won the Class One Boys 400m hurdles final increased the sense of excitement around the event and it certainly lived up to expectations Friday night. The first three athletes across the tape went under the old record of 51.37 held by Timor Barrett of St. Jago High in a blanket finish. Williams took gold in 49.94 while favourite Malik James-King of Calabar finished second in 50.03 and Jauavney James of STETHS finished third in 50.07.
The only record to go in the field on Friday was the Class 2 Girls Discus when defending champion Marie Forbes did what she had been promising all season. She set a new mark of 46.69m on her final throw to replace the record that was held by Olympian Gleneve Grange of Holmwood Technical.
The Class One Boys Triple Jump also created some amount of excitement as the Jamaica College pair of Malik Cunningham and Safin Willis finished first and second with best jumps of 15.59m and 15.57m respectively. Terrol Wilson of Kingston College was third with a best of 15.12m.
Ashanti Moore of Hydel High has been breaking records in the individual events that make up the Heptathlon and will be looking to take gold on today’s final day.
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