Until Usain Bolt, Yohan Blake and Asafa Powell rattled off fast early season times in the 100 metres, the hottest men’s event for Jamaica was the discus. Jason Morgan had extended his national record from 64.11 metres to 65.61 and latterly to 67.15. Almost in response, reigning national champion Traves Smikle came within 9 centimetres of the old mark with a personal best of 64.02 metres. At this year’s Nationals, Smikle came oh-so close with a big winning throw of 67.12. Those marks got Jason and Traves past the Olympic ‘A’ qualifying standards respectively. For the first time in our long and glorious track and field history, Jamaica had two throwers in an Olympic throwing event. Our love affair with sprinting means that those numbers don’t ring a bell to most. The odds are really long on Morgan being recognized in Jamaica by all but the hardiest track and field aficiandos. Yet the 67.15 placed the faceless Jamaican at seventh on the 2012 discus performance list at the time. That’s a fine achievement. His new found world class status hasn’t come easily. Once a winner at Boys Champs for Calabar, he has combined throwing with regular day jobs […]
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Racers Track Club president and head coach Glen Mills yesterday told The Gleaner that he will now lead the club’s 400m programme, and thanked Bertland Cameron for his contribution at the University of West Indies-based outfit, after the former senior 400m coach handed in his resignation on Tuesday. Cameron, a former World Championships 400m gold medallist, yesterday announced that he had brought his two-year tenure at Racers to an end and that he was now exploring other options, with all indications pointing to the creation of his own programme. But did Cameron pre-empt his fate? Mills would not speak on the matter, but information reaching The Gleaner is that Cameron’s departure from the club was always on the cards, and that the organisation’s directors were expected to show him the door at a meeting next week, after relations reportedly deteriorated between himself, some athletes and members of the club’s hierarchy. However, Mills focused instead on underlining his gratitude for Cameron’s contribution to the club and noted that he will now manage the club’s 400m programme in his absence Cameron was responsible for the development of athletes such as national 400m record holder Jermaine Gonzales, but Mills, who is most […]
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Harlis Meadersleft a sizeable void on the Florida State track & field staff when, after 18 seasons as the Seminoles’ throws coach – the last eight as associate head coach – he returned to his alma mater, the University of North Carolina, as the head coach. Florida State head coach Bob Braman’s search for a replacement led him directly to a man of sizeable stature and a passion to help his alma mater return to the top of the podium at the NCAA Championship meet. Dorian Scott, a 2007 Florida State graduate who was mentored by Meaders, has taken the reins as the Seminoles’ throws coach. A two-time Olympian representing Jamaica in the shot put, and a former All-American for the Seminoles, Scott jumped at the chance to return to Tallahassee after one season as the throws coach at San Diego State. His appointment came just a month after becoming the first Jamaican thrower to reach the Olympic finals in the shot put, finishing 10th at the London Games. “It’s extremely exciting, just at the level we’re at – going after national [championships] on both men’s and women’s side,” Scott said. “Not knocking San Diego State, but I was […]
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Jamaica Volleyball Association (JaVA), with sponsorship from Just Bet, Velle Sports International, Juici Patties, Red Bull, Hi-Lyte Sport Drink and Jamaica Blue, presented an exciting volleyball extravaganza at the Barbican Beach complex on Sunday September 9. 20 male and female teams from across the island matched wits and technical prowess, as they tried to secure one of the 6 vacancies in each gender category for the Just Bet/TvJ SN Beach Volleyball League scheduled to start on October 6 at the same venue. Following the Play-off, the male and female teams that qualify to the League will compete over the period of 4 weeks, on Saturdays and Sundays . After a preliminary round, teams will then play semi-finals and culminate with the finals on November 3. The League will also be used as the main premise for selecting players to represent Jamaica at international tournaments. Major Warrenton Dixon, President of the Jamaica Volleyball Association, said that the major focus of JaVA at this juncture is to ensure that the sponsors get value for money. The National pairs of Cherine Richards/Cheryl Daley and Dellan Brown/Donavon Larry Richards were the toasts at Sunday’s JaVA Just Bet/TvJ SN Beach Volleyball League qualifiers at the […]
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Bolt will run 100m at trials … But Olympic champion says JAAA will have to decide on 200m pick Usain Wild-card issue partially solvedBolt has given the selection committee of the Jamaica Athletics Administrative Association (JAAA) one less problem to worry about, as he has disclosed that he intends to compete in the 100 metres at the National Trials to select Jamaica’s team to next summer’s World Championships to be staged in Moscow, Russia. By virtue of the decision taken by the IAAF Council at its last general assembly in November last year, the overall event winner of the 32 Diamond League events will be granted automatic entry to the World Championships, in the same manner that the defending world champions profit. With Bolt emerging as the overall 100m champion of the recently concluded Diamond League series he, along with defending 100m world champion Yohan Blake, qualified for a bye to the World Championships. Each country is allowed a maximum of four entries in any one event at the World Championships, and so in cases where the defending champion and Diamond League winner are from the same country, only one will be allowed to participate as a wild-card entry, […]
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In her latest IAAF Online Diary entry, Veronica Campbell-Brown discusses her experience at the Olympic Games in London where she added two more medals to her illustrious collection. Although she didn’t walk away with gold, and didn’t win a medal in the 200m, the 30-year-old Jamaican was not disappointed. “One can only begin to talk about August with the English capital as the main subject. London hosted the Olympic Games and did an absolutely splendid job. I was impressed by the organisation of the Games and the massive crowds at every session of athletics augurs well for the future of our sport. “I walked away from the Games with two medals, a bronze in the 100m and a silver in the 4x100m relays. Yes, you read correctly, no medal in the 200m for me… .LOL. A lot has been said about my preparation and readiness without proper information, however, given what I went through in the 2012 season from a medical perspective, I am very appreciative of what I earned in London and congratulate the ladies who were able to secure higher medals. I take this opportunity to thank my loyal supporters and rest assured, I will press on! “My […]
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Herculez Gomez scored off a second-half free-kick as USA got their 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil™ qualifying campaign back on track with a 1-0 win over Jamaica on Tuesday. Gomez curled in a shot from the right side in the 55th minute for the Americans, who avenged a loss to Jamaica last week and earned three points with Tuesday’s win in front of a crowd of 24,000 at Columbus Crew Stadium. USA, Jamaica, and Guatemala all have seven points atop Group A in the semi-final round of qualifying in North and Central America and the Caribbean (CONCACAF). The top two teams from each group advance to the final phase of qualifying next year. Guatemala and the United States hold the edge over Jamaica with a superior goal difference. In the other group match, Guatemala defeated Antigua and Barbuda 1-0. USA has two games left in this round as they host Antigua and Barbuda on 12 October, then travel to Guatemala four days later. Jamaica claimed its first-ever win against the United States on Friday with a 2-1 victory in Kingston. The United States dominated the opening half, but failed to convert their chances as the game remained scoreless going into […]
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Hoping to contain the speedy Jamaica, the U.S. national team played a tight diamond midfield formation in a World Cup qualifier against the Reggae Boyz in Kingston on Friday night. The result, perhaps partially due to an off-night by three of the four U.S. middies, was a 2-1 win for Jamaica that puts the U.S. in near-precarious position with three games remaining in the semifinal round. It wasn’t that the fleet Jamaicans ran roughshod through the American defense. The U.S. did not allow Jamaica much of anything in the way of close-range scoring chances, minus the costly fouls by Kyle Beckerman and Jermaine Jones that led to free-kick goals from just outside the penalty area by Rodolph Austin and Luton Shelton. The problem was the creation of chances, or lack of, by the U.S., whose narrow posture produced only two notable crossing attempts from wide positions on Friday. It was compounded by the injury absences of field general Michael Bradley and the always dangerous Landon Donovan. But the Americans hope to change that in the rematch on Tuesday in Crew Stadium. They spent a lengthy portion of an open training session today working on finishing from […]
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September 9, 2012 IAAF World Challenge track and field meet in Rieti ; women’s 400m dash official result: 1 Kaliese SPENCER JAM – 50.63 2. Christine Day JAM – 51.97 3. Patricia Hall JAM – 52.48 4. Alina LOHVYNENKO – 52.51 5. Maria Enrica SPACCA – 52.93 6. Nataliya PYHYDA – 53.20 7. Flavia BATTAGLIA – 55.75 September 9, 2012 IAAF World Challenge track and field meet in Rieti ; women’s 100m dash Official result: 1 Aleen Bailey JAM – 11.21 2. Ivet LALOVA – 11.24 3. Tezzhan NAIMOVA – 11.26 4. Mikele Barber – 11.29 5. Myriam SOUMARE – 11.35 6. Nataliya POHREBNYAK – 11.36 7. Gloria Hooper – 11.62 8. Veronica Borsi – 11.80 September 9, 2012 IAAF World Challenge track and field meet in Rieti ; Men’s 400m dash Official result: 1. Calvin Smith – 45.12 2. Rabah Yousif – 45.20 3. Rusheen McDonald JAM – 45.46 4. Nigel Levine – 45.48 5. Donald Sanford – 46.41 6. Isalbet Juarez – 46.67 7. Marco LORENZI – 47.00 8. Lorenzo VALENTINI – 47.34 September 9, 2012 IAAF World Challenge track and field meet in Rieti ; men 100m dash Official result: 1 Christophe LEMAITRE – 10.04 2. Kim […]
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