media_artricles :: 2013

Taffe sizzles at Junior Champs

Abilene athletes, Ayodele Taffe and Jereem Richards, were impressive on the opening day of the National Association of Athletics Administrations (NAAA) National Junior Track and Field Championships, at the Hasely Crawford Stadium, in Port of Spain, yesterday.

Taffe struck gold in the Boys’ Under-20 100 metres dash in a fast 10.30 seconds—well inside the 10.50 Pan American Junior Championship standard. Silver medallist John Mark Constantine also dived under the Pan Am mark, the Concorde sprinter getting to the line in 10.37. Zenith’s Haysean Cowie-Clarke bagged bronze in 10.58.

Taffe bolted to the front in the century final. Constantine, though, stayed close, pushing his rival all the way to the finish line. Taffe held off the challenge, and was rewarded with a bonus—a new personal best (pb). Constantine also had the satisfaction of recording a pb.
Taffe achieved the Pan Am Juniors standard twice, yesterday. The 18-year-old sprinter had clocked 10.46 seconds in the semifinal round to advance to the final as the fastest qualifier.

With reigning Carifta Games champion Machel Cedenio sitting out the Championships because of exam commitments, Richards dominated the Boys’ Under-20 400m final.

Richards was in front coming off the final turn, and stayed there, getting to the line in 47.46 seconds. He enjoyed a huge cushion on second-placed Brandon Valentine-Parris, the St Vincent and the Grenadines athlete clocking 48.60. Darvin Sandy, of Alpha Athletics, was third in 49.24.

Lisa Wickham was in dominant mood in the Girls’ Under-20 100m final.

The Concorde sprinter ran away from the field for victory in 11.62 seconds. The clocking was inside the 11.65 Pan Am Juniors standard, but was aided by an illegal 2.2 metres per second following wind—just above the 2.0 allowable limit.

Peli Alzola, of Memphis Pioneers, was a distant second in 11.94, while third spot was copped by Zenith’s Zakiya Denoon (11.96).

Hurdlers thrived at the Crawford Stadium, yesterday.

Running into a 1.6 metres per second headwind, Ruebin Walters clocked 13.98 seconds to grab gold in the Boys’ Under-20 110m hurdles. The Memphis athlete was inside the 14.00 Pan Am Juniors qualifying time, and well ahead of silver medallist Christian Hood Boyce, the UTT Fast Track hurdler getting home in 14.71. Bronze went to Zenith’s Dejere Saul, in 15.34.

Another Zenith hurdler, Aaron Lewis made a mockery of the World Youth Championship qualifying standard. Lewis was unchallenged in winning the Boys’ Under-18 110m hurdles in 13.93 seconds—almost half-a-second faster than the 14.40 clocking required to be eligible for selection on the Trinidad and Tobago team for the July 10-14 World Youth Championships, in Donetsk, Ukraine.

The real race was the duel for silver between Point Fortin New Jets athlete Tauren George and Xavier Mulugata, of Memphis. George clocked 14.89 seconds to secure the runner-up spot, forcing Mulugata to settle for third in 14.98.

Carifta Games Girls’ Under-17 300m hurdles champion Jeminise Parris won the Girls’ Under-18 100m hurdles in 14.39 seconds, the Memphis athlete beating the 14.55 World Youth standard.

Point Fortin’s Maurina Joseph (19.23) finished second.

Another Carifta champion, Rebirth’s Hezekiel Romeo was in a class of his own in the Boys’ Under-20 shot put. He won with a big 18.21 metres throw, the iron ball landing well beyond the 17.60m Pan Am Juniors qualifying distance.

UTT’s Shervorne Worrell (15.03m) and Peterson McDavid (12.70m), of Striders, were second and third, respectively.

Portious Warren achieved the World Youth Standard in the girls’ under-18 shot put, the Toco TAFAC athlete winning the event with a 13.83m effort.

Chelsea James, of Tobago Falcons, missed out on the 13.50m qualifying distance by 10 centimetres, the 2012 and 2013 Carifta Games Girls’ Under-17 shot put winner throwing 13.40m to secure second spot.

Unattached athlete, Andwuelle Wright, who retained his Boys’ Under-17 long jump title at the 2013 Carifta Games, topped the Under-18 long jump field yesterday with a 7.09 metres leap.

Mark London, a double gold medallist at Carifta 2013, did not face the starter in the boys’ Under-20 1500m. In his absence, Air Bon Sonics runner, Jevon Joseph won in four minutes, 08.31 seconds.

London is expected to start in today’s 800m event. Also on show on the second and final day of the Championships will be Carifta Games Boys’ Under-20 5,000m champion Akeem Marshall.

Action at the Crawford Stadium today is scheduled to start at 10 a.m.

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