It will be a busy first day of the 19th Pan American Under-20 Track and Field Championships that starts today at Estadio Chan Chan in Trujillo, Peru, with 22 members of 30 athletes in action over the two sessions today.

Jamaica won 13 medals two years ago when the event was held in Canada, with the men’s 4×100 team being the only gold medal winners.

Ten medals will be at stake for Jamaica on today’s opening day led by discus thrower Roje Stona, the world leader in the Under-20 age group who will be seeking to break the championships record 66.48m set in 2011 in Miramar, Florida, by Jamaican Traves Smikle.

Stona has a season and personal best 66.41m and will also have Kevin Nedrick to accompany him in the event set for the afternoon session.

It will be a busy day for middle-distance runners Akeem Colley and Shemar Salmon, who both will run the semi-finals of the 1500m in the morning and the semi-finals of the 800m in the afternoon session.

Both semi-finals of the female and male 100m races will be held in the morning session, with the qualifiers advancing to the finals set for later in the afternoon.

Aneka Brissett and Patrice Moody will fly the Jamaican flag in the female 100m and will come up against Trinidad and Tobago’s talented Khalifa St Forte and American Candace Hill, who are expected to battle it out for the gold medal.

Ashanie Smith and Christopher Grant are the male representatives.

Boosted by the gold medal performances by Jamaicans in the sprint hurdles at last week’s IAAF World Under-18 championships in Nairobi, Kenya, the more senior Jamaicans will seek to emulate that feat when they line up in both semi-finals this morning.

Janeek Brown and Amoi Brown are the Jamaicans in the female race, with Phillip Lemonious and Damion Thomas taking part in the men’s race.

The US-based Thomas — who won at Carifta last year, was expected to medal in the 110m hurdles at last year’s IAAF World Under-20, but crashed out after hitting a hurdle — will seek to make amends.

Stacey Williams and Kimorle Muschette will be the female 400m runners, with Chantz Sawyers and Anthony Carpenter taking the one-lap challenge in the men’s race.

All the finals are set for the afternoon when the long jump in both genders will also be held.

Tissanna Hickling and Susan Francis will contest the female event and Carey McLeod and Damion Creary will be in the men’s event.

— Paul Reid