J’can hurdler Thomas named SEC’s Freshman of the Week
Jamaican sprint hurdler Damion Thomas has been named the Southeastern Conference (SEC) Men’s Freshman of the Week.
The 18-year-old ran a world junior-leading 13.68 seconds in the 110m hurdles at the Texas Relays last weekend.
The ‘6-2’ Sunrise, Florida native, who represented Jamaica at the Carifta Games and the IAAF World Junior Championships in 2016, later clocked a wind-aided 13.43 seconds in the final.
The 13.43 mark is the second-fastest all-conditions time in the world for 2018, and it ranks as the fastest time in the NCAA this year.
Thomas, now at Louisiana State University (LSU), has won both of his 110m hurdle races this season, registering 13.79 to claim the top spot at the Pac-12/Big Ten Challenge in Tempe, Arizona, in late March.
He is poised to join Jamaica’s new generation of sprint hurdlers that include Ronald Levy and Dejour Russell.
Gatorade Florida Boys Track and Field Athlete of the Year as a junior in 2016 and the number three high school hurdler in the US last year, Thomas and the rest of the LSU track and field team will compete at their first home meet of the 2018 outdoor season on today. The Battle on the Bayou will begin at 9:30 am at Bernie Moore Track Stadium.
— Paul Burrowes
