JAMAICA’s double Olympic sprint champion Elaine Thompson Herah took the double at yesterday’s inaugural North American, Central American and Caribbean Athletics Association (NACAC) New Life Invitational, a World Athletics Continental Tour – Silver Level at Ansin Sports Complex in Miramar, Florida.
Thompson Herah was the sole Jamaican individual event winner as the other victors were members of a Jamaican men’s 4x100m team who also won their event while teen sensation Briana Williams lowered her national junior record for the third time in a one-week period as she ran 10.97 seconds (1.2m/s) for third place in the women’s 100m.
Williams, who had run 11.01 seconds last Sunday and 10.98 seconds a day later in Jacksonville, Florida, takes over as fourth best of all times in the women’s Under-20 by herself, passing American Candace Hill with whom she had tied for fourth place earlier.
Five Jamaicans, led by Commonwealth Games champions Fedrick Dacres and Ronald Levy, were second in their events as well.
Thompson Herah won the 100m in 10.87 seconds (1.2m/s) and returned later to win the 200m in a season’s best 22.54 seconds (1.2m/s) as she continued her preparation for the defence of her titles at the Jamaica Athletics Association (JAAA) National Championship to be held in just over two weeks’ time.
She had run a wind-aided 10.92 seconds (3.0m/s) in the preliminaries while Williams had clocked 10.93 seconds (3.6m/s).
American Tianna Bartoletta was second in 10.96 seconds while Veronica Campbell Brown also clocked a season’s best 11.20 seconds in the final.
Shockoria Wallace ran a personal best 11.18 seconds (1.7m/s) for second place in the B final, which was good for sixth overall, while World Championships relay gold medallist Jonielle Smith also had a season’s best 11.28 seconds (1.7m/s) time in the consolation final.
Later on, Thompson Herah ran her first wind-legal 200m of the season, holding off a strong field as compatriot Natalliah White was fifth in 22.54 seconds.
Yohan Blake ran a wind-aided 9.97 seconds to lead the men’s 100m preliminaries but appeared to be limping off the track, eventually not showing up for the final that was won by American Trayvon Bromell in 9.77 seconds (1.5m/s) to extend his world lead.
Nigel Ellis had run 10.08 seconds (3.1m/s) and Tyquendo Tracey 10.20 seconds (2.1m/s) but likewise did not show up for the final.
The foursome of Tracey, Ellis, Blake and Oshane Bailey had run 39.22 seconds to win the men’s 4x100m relay that was held early in the day.
Dacres, who is coming off an injury that restricted him competing, threw a season’s best 66.01m for second in the men’s discus throw while his training partner Kai Chang had a personal best 63.33m for third as Samoan Alex Rose won with 67.12m, the sixth best in the world so far.
Levy ran a wind-aided 13.23 seconds (2.6m/s) for the runner-up spot in the 110m hurdles, behind the American Michael Dickson with 13.16 seconds.
Ronda White was consistent with a 55.65 seconds clocking for second in the women’s 400m hurdles behind World and Olympic champion Dalilah Muhammad, who ran a season’s best 54.50 seconds.
Jamaica’s Rushell Clayton started well but stopped before the midway stage of the race.
Sean Rowe was also second in the men’s 400m hurdles, running 49.53 seconds as Jaheel Hyde was fifth in 49.86 seconds, just under his previous time of 49.87 seconds which he ran at a meet in Kingston last weekend.
Jazmine Fray finished second in the women’s 800m in a season’s best two minutes 02.60 seconds while Rajay Hamilton was fifth in the men’s race in 1:47.31 minutes.
Chanice Porter was fourth in the women’s long jump with a wind-aided 6.64m (3.7m/s) while Sabina Allen was sixth, also with a wind-aided 6.51m (3.2m/s).
Rusheen McDonald was fifth in the men’s 400m in 47.27 seconds as Nathon Allen was disqualified for a false start
