KC’s White stars at Champs day three with 45.84 - Purples hold 23.5-point lead; Top-three girls schools tightly bunched

Following Thursday's finals in the 400 metres, the ISSA GraceKennedy Boys and Girls' Championships is shaping up to be a nail-biter, especially in the race for the girls' title, with two days to go.

Defending champions Kingston College (KC), after 15 of 42 finals, lead the boys' standings with 99.5 points, ahead of Calabar High with 76 and Jamaica College (JC) with 54, rounding out the top three.

After 16 of 46 finals, Hydel High lead the girls' standings with 88 points, followed by defending champions Edwin Allen High with 84 and Holmwood Technical with 83.

In the performance of the night, Tajh Marques White of KC came off the pace in the Class One boys' 400m and ran a blinder, winning the event in a personal best of 45.84 seconds. It was maximum points for The Purples as his teammate, Marcinho Rose, secured second in 45.90 seconds, while Omarie Williamson of Holmwood finished third in 46.66 seconds.

Earlier, Calabar also secured a quinella in the Class Three boys' 400m, as Rajeve Allison won in 50.33 seconds ahead of his teammate Justin McKoy, who placed second in 50.66. Nicholas Jones of Lacovia High took third in 50.73.

KC picked up another 400m victory after Jason Pitter won the Class Two final in 47.92 seconds. Calabar High's Di Wayne Sharpe finished second in 48.30, while Chanton Whyte secured Denbigh High's first medal at these Championships with a third-place finish in 48.56.

HYDEL'S DOMINANCE

Hydel's girls continued their dominance in the 400m with two victories, led by a quinella in Class Two. Nastassia Fletcher was outstanding, winning in a personal best of 52.82 seconds ahead of Sashana Johnson, 54.08 seconds. Maddison Campbell of Holmwood claimed third in 54.44.

Abigail Campbell showed great determination in the final 50 metres, successfully defending her Class One title in 53.03 seconds. Abrina Wright of Holmwood took second in 53.53, the same time awarded to Edwin Allen's Kellyann Carr for third.

Shameika McLean created history for Foga Road High with a vintage run in the Class Three 400m, securing the school's first ever medal at the Championships. She controlled the race from start to finish, winning easily in 54.22 seconds ahead 0f Tracey-Ann Evans of Holmwood, 55.55, and Hydel's Shaneil Henry, 56.19.

FIELD EVENTS

St Elizabeth Technical High School continued their strong performance in the horizontal jumps as Anastacia Richards dominated the Class Four long jump final. She posted the three best marks in the event, winning with a distance of 5.49m. Edwin Allen's Kemoya Campbell placed second with 5.21m, while Shanique Watt of Immaculate Conception secured third with 5.16m.

St. Mary's High's Sackoya Palmer won gold in the girls' Class Three high jump after clearing 1.65m. Brianna Stewart of St Jago High and Stefvanco Henry of Campion College also cleared the same height, but finished second and third, respectively, based on count-back.

Immaculate Conception's Jaeda Robinson captured the gold medal in the girls' Class Two long jump with a leap of 5.91m. Hydel's Zavien Bernard took silver with 5.87m, while last year's winner, Jenella Canns of St Jago High, finished third with 5.55m.

JC's Joseph Salmon continued his unbeaten streak this season in the Class One discus, delivering a massive throw of 62.14m to secure the title. Rajay Hemmings of St Catherine High claimed silver with 54.61m, while Rajeem Streete of Munro College took bronze with 54.50m.

Munro College's Javontae Smith, another standout athlete this season, impressed in the boys' Class Two shot put with a winning throw of 18.81m. Kamari Kennedy of Calabar placed second with 18.25m, while St Catherine High's Adrian Daley finished third with 17.30m.

In a highly competitive boys' Class Three high jump final, Calabar's Shamar Shaw emerged victorious after clearing 1.78m. KC's Jamari Nugent and Herbert Morrison Technical's Leondrae Thomas tied for second place, also clearing 1.78m.

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