* A Hydel athlete takes the hand-off during the Penn Relays Championship of Americas 4x100 in 2022
Photo Credit: Joe Swift/MileSplit
As American high school track and field programs progress over the regular season in the United States, over in Jamaica it's a different story.
Some of the Caribbean country's top athletes are unloading for ridiculous results at the ISSA Grace Kennedy Boys and Girls Championships this weekend at National Stadium in Kingston.
The event, which began Wednesday, goes through Saturday.
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And an important reminder, as it holds some value down the line for the American teams: A selection of these very Jamaican teams and athletes will soon find themselves in Philadelphia for The Penn Relays.
Which means these results are of great importance as we sift through the season.
The biggest statement makers?
Just yesterday, we got a couple of them.
Hydel's Alana Reid, an international talent who won a bronze in the 100m at the World U20 Championships last year, has made the biggest statement thus far on the girls' side, clocking a wind-legal time of 10.92 seconds in the 100m (+1.0) to earn a victory in the championship final on Thursday, a national Jamaican junior record which also surpassed Veronica Campbell Brown's old Class One record of 11.13. That effort was last accomplished in 2001, while Tina Clayton's junior record was set last year at the World U20 Championships.
For perspective, the next closest competitor, Alexis James, was roughly five tenths of a second behind. Although, there was a bit of what-could-have-been. After clocking a time of 11.17 in the semifinals, Edwin Allen's Serena Cole bowed out of the finals due to a reported hamstring issue.
Meanwhile, in the boys 100m another feat was being achieved, this time in astounding fashion.
Kingston College's Bouwahjgie Nkrumie became the first high school athlete in Jamaican history to under 10 seconds on Thursday, producing a wind-legal time of 9.99 (+0.3) to win the Class One title.
His effort, which held off Deandre Daley's 10.14 and Jaiden Reed's 10.26, was the final conclusion to his semifinal time of 10.08 and surpassed the old division record of 10.12, which Zharnel Hughes has owned since 2014, per the Jamaican-Star.
He told the Jamaican Star afterward: "The journey has been rough. If only some athletes in the high school area had the mindset I have, they would be so fantastic. I'm happy to achieve this time, and it is only going to get better from here. I wasn't pleased with the execution in the final again. That was the reason why I lost last year, but definitely, I promise you, I will get it together."
While entries for the Penn Relays have not been released yet, both Hydel and Kingston College competed at the event last year and have a longstanding history attending the famed relays.
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The 2022 Penn Relays Championship of America Girls 4x100
Other top results from two days of action at the ISSA Champs:
- The first round of the girls 400m produced times of 52.27 from Oneika Mcannuff and 53.21 from Tony-Ann Beckford ...in the same heat.
- Jodyann Mitchell ran 4:29.24 in the 1,500m to win the girls final, out-lasting Kishay Rowe's 4:30.29
- Cedricka Williams made a statement in the discus throw, claiming a mark of 57.84 meters (189-9.25), a performance that would stand among the best in American history, too.
