Will Calabar make it six in a row?
Last year’s remarkable fifth successive title was a testament to the Red Hills Road based institution’s vast talent in track and field. They were dwindled by injury concerns prior to the championship prompting most persons to doubt whether they could retain their crown. But they did, continuing their dominance and upsetting, yet again, their North Street rivals Kingston College, playing out another fantastic battle between both teams who have been dominating the Championships for the best part of two decades.
This year, many expect another assertive performance from the green and black outlet. It took them 287.5 points to clinch the ISSA/Grace Boys Athletics Championships last year, a mere 37.5 points ahead of KC in second. The Championships have never seen such domination since the likes of, you guessed it, Kingston College. KC went on a 12-year winning spree between 1963 -1975 and is the last team to win six consecutive Championships (2001-2006).
For Calabar to match that feat they would need another massive performance especially from their leading athletes, such as Christopher Taylor and Dejour Russell. The latter has looked impressive in pre-championship races, winning the Class 1 Boys 110m hurdles at the Youngster Goldsmith Classics at the National Stadium earlier this month.
As for Taylor, since almost single-handedly leading his team to another Championship title last year, the 16-year-old has become somewhat of a national phenom. The Jamaican youth record 400m holder set the standard high for himself last year after displaying one of the best performances at the 2016 Grace Boys and Girls Athletic Championships.
His status continues to get higher with each scintillating performance and the Calabar faithful will definitely be hoping that he will be able to lead their team to another milestone victory.