Today’s Class One girls’ discus throw final is expected to be an exciting event featuring a number of the island’s top throwers in what could be a showdown on the second afternoon of the ISSA/GraceKennedy Boys’ and Girls’ Athletics championships at the national stadium Tuesday.

Holmwood Technical’s World Under-20 finalist Cedricka Williams will start as a favourite after leading from Tuesday’s preliminaries, but is expected to be pushed all the way by the likes of Camperdown High’s Britannia Johnson as well as two Edwin Allen High throwers, Rochel Solmon and Damali Williams.

Williams, who broke the Class Two meet record last year, threw 45.75m on her second attempt after fouling her first effort, while Camperdown High’s Johnson, last year’s Class Two silver medallist, also needed two throws to advance with 45.28m, with Rochel Solmon throwing 44.35m and Williams who was third in Class One last year, also advancing with 43.77m.

St Jago High’s Jamora Alves had a busy day on Tuesday as she also qualified for the discus final with a mark of 42.64m after throwing a personal best 42.84m to lead the Girls’ Open javelin throw.

The 18-year-old Grenadian, who was third last year, beat her previous personal best 40.85m in the javelin set last year, while Edwin Allen’s Sheniela Williams, who won the silver medal last year, was next with 36.60m, Hydel High’s Shericka Christie, fifth last year, also advancing with a best of 36.60m while St Catherine High’s G’Nea Pitt got the automatic qualifying distance of 35.00m with 36.38m.

Pitt’s teammate Natalie Albert, Hydel’s Natassia Burrell, St Jago’s Chrishale McCarthy and Holmwood’s discus throw specialist Cedricka Williams were also among those advancing to the final.

Hydel High’s Natassia Burrell leads the way into today’s Class Two shot put final after throwing 13.81m on her first attempt in the preliminaries yesterday to lead Camperdown High’s Victoria Christie (13.56m), Immaculate Conception’s Maja Henry (13.04m) and Hydel High’s Akelia Wilson (12.98m).

Meanwhile, Mt Alvernia High’s Aaliyah Foster, who was second in last year’s Class Two girls’ long jump will hope to improve the quality of her medal in Thursday’s final after yesterday’s preliminaries.

Foster, the Western Champs winner, jumped a wind-aided 5.51m (4.1m/s), just over the automatic qualifying mark of 5.50m, to book her place in the final.

Meanwhile, last year’s Class Three silver medallist St Jago High’s Jade-Ann Dawkins, who had a wind-aided 5.79m (3.8m/s), led the qualifying while Donielle Lewis of Edwin Allen, who jumped a wind-aided 5.51m (4.5m/s), is through along with her teammate Santae Wilson-5.59m (2.8m/s), St Jago High’s Tamara Bailey-5.55m (1.7m/s) and St Elizabeth Technical’s Rojrika Campbell-5.49m (2.5m/s).

— Paul Reid