Sunday, 16 March 2008 McKenzie, Ashmeade star in Kingston as Jamaican high school championships conclude
Ramone McKenzie winning the Jamaican High School 400m title (Anthony Foster)
Kingston, Jamaica - World Youth 200m champion Ramone McKenzie and Nickel Ashmeade, triple medallist from last summer’s World Youth Championships, were winners on Saturday’s final day of the Grace Kennedy-sponsored Jamaican High School Athletics Championships at the National Stadium.
Calabar’s McKenzie, who won the 200m in Ostrava, won the boys’ Class One 400m, running out of lane eight in 46.61 ahead of St. Jago’s Ricker Hylton (47.33) and Mannings High’s Darion Bent (47.52).
Ashmeade takes race of the championships
However, in the boys’ Class One 200m, the race of the championships, which piped three World Youth medallists and one World Junior medallist, St. Jago’s Ashmeade prevailed.
Ashmeade, who finished third behind McKenzie in Ostrava, turned the table this time around with a hard-fought 21.04 seconds victory against a negative 2.1 head wind.
In the final, which was witnessed by a cheering crowd of over 20,000, McKenzie was second in 21.05 while World Junior 100m bronze medallist Yohan Blake of St. Jago, the world fastest junior at 10.11 seconds, was third in 21.31.
In the girls’ Class Two 200m, Jura Levy, a semi-final in the 100m at World Youth last year, completed the sprint double by taking the event in 24.48 to add to her Championship record 11.46 in the 100m. Herbert Morrison’s Antonique Campbell was second in 24.62 and Deneisha Morris of Manchester High finished third in 25.07.
St. Thomas Technical’s Carrie Russell, the Beijing World Junior Championships 100m silver medallist, was fourth in 25.15.
Like Levy, Holmwood Technical’s Chris-Ann Gordon won the 200m in 25.32 to add to her 100m victory in Class Four.
Bridgeport High’s Jazeel Murphy turned the table on 100m champion Adam Cummings, winning boys’ Class Three event in 22.62 seconds. Odean Skeen of Wolmer’s was second in 23.02 while Cummings was third in 23.28.
Manchester High’s Class Three athlete Sandrae Farguharson was also a double winner on Saturday’s final day. She won the 200m in 24.66 and the 400m 54.25, beating Vere’s Shericka Jackson (24.74) and (54.27) on both occasions.
In the girls’ Class Two 800m, Manchester High’s Natoya Goule, who won the 1500m, returned to take the 800m in 2:08.74. Campion College’s Theon O’Connor took the boys’ Class One 800m in 1:51.15.
The boys’ Class One 110m hurdles went to Akeem Smith of St. Jago in 13.82 (13.822), beating Kingston College’s Kerion Stewart (13.824) in the photo finish room.
In the relays, Calabar won the boys’ Class One 4x100m in 40.28. St. Jago, who ran 39.78 in the heats, dropped the baton.
St. Jago boys returned to take the 4x400m title in 3:11.86 while Edwin Allen, who earlier won the girls’ 4x100m in 45.26, lost a close contest to Holmwood (3:36.44) in the 4x400m.
Fourteen-year-old Adam Cummings’ 10.91 run in the Class Three boys’ 100m and Jura Levy’s 11.46 100m Class Two victory were named boys’ and girls’ top performances of the meet, which was watched Olympians Donovan Bailey of Canada and Trinidad & Tobago’s Ato Boldon.
by At the end of the four-day Championships, Calabar, the high school of the late Olympian Herb McKenley, were crowned boys’ champions with 277.5 points, ahead of Kingston College (233), St. Jago (155.5), Jamaica College (153) and Wolmer’s (128).
In the girls’ section, Holmwood won their sixth straight title under head coach Maurice Wilson with 352 points, ahead of Vere (210.5), Edwin Allen (206), Manchester (147) and St. Jago (125.5).
NOTE: The Classes breakdown, for girls: ages 18-19 (Class One), 16-17 (Class Two), 14-15 (Class Three) and 12-13 (Class Four). On the boys’ side, 17-19 (Class One), 15-16 (Class Two), 13-14 (Class Three). Unlike international standard, under the Inter-Secondary Schools Sports Association (ISSA), the governing body for high school sports in Jamaica rule, based on the school year - September 1 to August 31 – athletes who turn 20-year-old after the latter date can compete.
Anthony Foster for the IAAF