Harrison’s Class Three streak

Neil Harrison’s confidence that he can build Jamaica College’s (JC) athletics team from the bottom up may be stemming from the great results he has achieved in Class Three over the years.

He won the 100m for the Under-15 boys for three consecutive years when he was at Munro College, with Rolando Reid, Adam Cummings and his son Kaneil Harrison running riot at Champs at the National Stadium in 2007, 2008 and 2009.

At Kingston College, he coached Bouwahjgie NKrumie and Adrian Kerr to the 100m and 200m records, respectively, at Champs last year.

He is threatening to go for another record this year, as Christopher Scott and Dwight Downer turned heads with their 200m performances at the S.W. ISAAC Henry Invitational last week.

Scott blitzed to 22.78 seconds in a negative wind of 3.5 m/s, while Downer stopped the clock at 23.12 with a wind reading of -2.3 m/s.

Both athletes were also part of the Class Three team that ran 44.04 in the 4x100m at the Milo Western Relays three weeks ago, and Harrison believes these boys are the foundation on which the next great JC athletics team will be built.

“I have decided to start from Class Three, and I have Scott. He is one of them who has already adapted my school of thought because, if you notice, he has been running the 400m in the development meets, and that is because when you have a quarter base, it is good for you when you are stepping down. For him, you could pick any of the three events, and he would be a force to be reckoned with,” Harrison said.

“It is difficult to bend the tree when it is old. Those who are in Class One would have already gone five to six years at Jamaica College, and they would have already been accustomed to some things, and change sometimes is not readily accepted. But the babies, they tend to listen, and they tend to follow, and when you start from down there, it builds a trend come right up through the system, and that is what I want to inculcate into the Jamaica College team.”

Scott told STAR Sports that he wants to become the third Class Three athlete under the tutelage of Harrison to break a record in the 100 or 200 metres.

“I want to win both races and also try for the record. If I get better conditions, I believe I can run faster,” Scott said.