by Clayton Clarke

BYDGOSZCZ, Poland:(Sunday, July, 24): Jamaica led the way again for the Caribbean at the 16th IAAF World Under 20 Track and Field Championships at the Zawisza Stadium which ended earlier today. After six days of competition, the Jamaicans amassed eight medals (two gold, three silver and three bronze) to finish fifth on the medal table behind USA 21 (11, 6, 4), Kenya 9 (5, 2, 2), Ethiopia 10 (4, 2, 4) and Cuba 5 (3, 2, 0). Barbados, British Virgin Islands, Grenada and Trinidad and Tobago were joint 38th with one bronze medal each.

Leading the way for Jamaica was Jaheel Hyde who won his second straight World Junior men’s 400m hurdles gold medal with a time 49.03 seconds. Tiffany James was the other gold medallist for Jamaica taking the women’s 400m title (51.32) for the first time for her country with compatriot Junelle Bromfield in third (52.05).  Rushelle Burton raced to silver in the women’s 100m hurdles in a Jamaican junior record of 12.87 in a super fast race. Shannon Kalawan claimed silver in the womb’s 400m hurdles (56.54). James, Bromfield and Kalawan combined with Stacy-Ann Williams and Roneisha McGregor (ran in the heats) to secure silver in the women’s 4x400m (3:01.01). Bronze medals came courtesy of Nigel Ellis in the men’s 200m (20.63) and the men’s 4x400m team of  Anthony Carpenter, Sean Bailey, Terry Thomas, Christopher Taylor and Aykeem Francis (ran in the heats), 3:04.83.  

Jamaica has medalled at all sixteen editions of the meet and was the leading Caribbean country each time.

In Poland, athletes from four other Caribbean countries mounted the podium.  Mario Burke (Barbados) and Khalifa St. Fort (Trinidad and Tobago) maintained the region’s pedigree in the sprints by winning bronze in the men’s and women’s 100m respectively.  Burke on Barbados’ second medal (after Akela Jones gold medal in the long jump in 2014) while St. Fort copped the second women’s 100m bronze for T&T and the country’s 17th medal overall. Grenadian Anderson Peters, claimed bronze in the men’s javelin with national junior and senior record of  79.65 to win his country’s fourth medal.  Kyron McMaster earned the British Virgin Islands’ first medal with his bronze in the men’s 400m hurdles. McMaster clocked 49.56, a new national junior and senior record.

Jah Nhai Pernichief was Bermuda’s top finisher with his seventh place finish in the men’s high jump while Miguel Van Assen was the best for Suriname, taking eighth place in the men’s triple jump. Jamal Walton was top competitor for the Cayman Islands reaching the semi-finals of the men’s 400m while men’s 200m semi-finalist  Coull Graham was highest placed of the Antigua and Barbuda athletes.

Justice Dreischor (Aruba-men’s 800), Shanee Angol (Dominica-women’s javelin), Jermaine Francis (St. Kitts & Nevis-men’s high jump), Aki Guerrier (Turks and Caicos-women’s 400m) and Myia Dorsey (US Virgin Islands-women’s 200m) also competed, bowing out in the heats.

Of the Caribbean countries, Jamaica sent the largest team (32 athletes) ahead of The Bahamas (13), Trinidad and Tobago (12), Barbados (7).