Sizzling Salmon
Jamaica set two of three records on yesterday’s second and penultimate day of the 47th FLOW Carifta Games at the Thomas A Robinson National Stadium in Nassau, Bahamas, as they extended their lead in the medals table.
Shiann Salmon set a new championship record in the Under-20 girls’ 400m hurdles when she ran 56.22 seconds, while the Under-17 girls’ 4x100m relay team clocked a fine 44.95 seconds to break records that were held by Jamaicans.
The other record came in the pole vault, where Martinique’s Baptiste Thiery cleared 5.05m, a massive improvement over the 4.65m set last year by Curacao’s Glenn Kunst.
Jamaica, meanwhile, swept all four 400m hurdles and 4x100m relay events as they amassed 47 medals at press time last night — 25 gold, 17 silver and five bronze.
The Bahamas were next with 25 medals — five gold, 11 silver and nine bronze, while Martinique have four medals inclusive of three gold and one bronze; Trinidad are on eight — two gold, two silver and four bronze, while Curacao, The Cayman Islands and Guyana all have one gold each.
Salmon broke the championship record of 56.29 seconds set by compatriot Shannon Kalawan in 2016 when she ran 56.22 seconds yesterday followed by her teammate Sanique Walker, last year’s Under-18 winner, in 57.97 seconds, while St Kitts and Nevis’s Raenda Richards took the bronze with 59.83secs.
Rovane Williams continued his purple patch landing the Under-20 gold in 50.69secs, after a slow start, while missing the record 49.76secs held by Trinidad’s Jehue Gordon.
Williams improved on the silver medal he won in the Under-18 section last year after qualifying with the fastest time from the morning’s preliminaries.
Curacao’s Ramey Angela, who was third in the 400m on Saturday, took the silver medal in 50.75secs, while Jamaica’s Malik James-King, who had a disqualification in the first round overturned, took the bronze in 51.00secs.
Devonte Archer led from the second hurdle and won by a massive margin in the Under-17 400m hurdles in 52.85secs, as Barbadian Kyle Gale, who was disqualified after winning the 400m on Saturday, made up with a silver medal in 54.45secs, while The Bahamas’s Raymond Oriaki took the bronze in 54.54secs.
Calisha Taylor had started the domination by the Jamaicans when she won the Under-17 event in one minute 01.04 seconds, easily beating The Bahamas’s Indea Cartwright (1:02.17 minutes) and Trinidad’s Patrice Richards (1:02.56 minutes).
The girls’ Under-17 4x100m team led off by a brilliant run from Briana Williams, clocked 44.95secs to beat the 45.05secs set by another Jamaican foursome in 2009.
Sashieka Steele, Serena Cole and Tia Clayton ran the other legs as The Bahamas were second in 46.24secs and the Cayman Islands third in 47.74secs.
The boys’ Under-17 team had things their own way as Jahvel Granville, Vashaun Vascianna, Rajay Morris, and Terrique Stennett clocked 41.04secs to beat the Cayman Islands (44.29secs) and Turks and Caicos (44.34secs).
The Under-20 girls’ team of Ockera Myrie, Michae Harriott, Ray-donna Lee, and Amoi Brown won their race in 44.73secs with The Bahamas second in 45.14secs and Martinique third in 46.48secs.
The boys’ Under-20 team comprising Ryiem Robertson, Christopher Taylor, Xavier Nairne, and Michael Bentley completed the clean sweep, winning in 39.56secs.
Trinidad, in their only relay of the evening, were second in 40.29secs and Barbados third in 40.43secs.
Wayne Pinnock won the Under-20 long jump with a best mark of 7.46m (-1.3m/s) beating his teammate Safin Willis (7.28m, -2.8m/s) with Denvaughn Whymns of The Bahamas third with 7.13m.
Lacee Barnes of the Cayman Islands, who was second in the Under-20 girls’ shot put, took the gold in the discus throw yesterday with a best mark of 49.81m, beating two Jamaicans in the process.
Marie Forbes took the silver medal with 45.72m and shot put champion Aiko Jones was third with 43.46m.
Jamaica had first and second in the Under-17 girls’ long jump with Ackelia Smith winning with a wind-aided 5.91m (2.8m/s) ahead of Velecia Williams (5.73m, -0.7m/s) and The Bahamas’s Anthaya Charlton with 5.64m (-0.6m/s).
Romaine Beckford won the Under-17 boys’ high jump with 2.00m, easily beating two Bahamians — Tyler Missick and Christian Stupprup — who both cleared 1.90m, same as fourth-placed Nathan Crawford-Wallis of Barbados.
It was gold and silver for Jamaica in the Under-17 boys’ shot put with Zackery Dillon winning with 16.40m ahead of Ralford Mullings (15.49m), with Tarajh Hudson of The Bahamas taking the bronze with 14.01m.
Monifah Green (10 minutes 18.25 seconds) and Kayan Green (10:29.12 minutes) were the gold and silver medallists in the girls’ 3,000m with Guadeloupe’s Anaelle Nachon (10:35.41 minutes) taking the bronze.
The Bahamas’s Mitchell Curtis and Jamaica’s Giovouni Henry staged an epic battle over the final 90 metres of the Under-17 3,000m in the race of the day that got the crowd on its feet.
Curtis, who led for most of the race, held on to win in 9 minutes 04.65 seconds, just ahead of Henry (9:04.98 minutes), with Gianna Henry, Giovouni’s identical twin, third in 9:21.97 minutes.
In the morning session, Cheyanne Fearon took the silver in the Under-17 girls’ discus throw, while Malachi Johnson was upgraded to bronze in the Under-20 boys’ 400m from Saturday after the winner was disqualified.
Fearon threw 34.57m behind Barbados’s Shanice Hutson with 41.56m, while Dominica’s Treneese Hamilton took the bronze with 33.58m.