By Rawle Toney At Albion
After the completion of 73 events defending champions Upper Demerara (District 10) remained in control of the National Schools Track and Field Championships which wraps up today at the Albion Community Center Ground in Corentyne Berbice.
They closed yesterday on 304 points with Corentyne (District 6) second on 288 points and North Georgetown, 276 points, third.
New Amsterdam/Canje, 216 ½ points; West Demerara (District 3) 213 points; Rupununi, 201 points; West Coast Berbice, 199 points; Bartica, 191 ½ points; Essequibo, 187 points; East Coast Demerara, 185 points; East Georgetown, 163 ½ points and South Georgetown,144 points, follow.
The other competing districts are way behind and still unable to reach the 100-point mark.
Day Three of the competition was halted during the 200-metre finals as the officials ruled that the light was too dark to allow the competition to continue.
Although the athletes were called onto the track to prepare for the event, they were forced to wait over one-and-one-half hours as the organizers tried to mobilize portable lights but some of the athletes complained that whilst warming up they were unable to see the lanes.
Today’s proceedings are set to get underway at 9:00 hours with the 200 metres.
Yesterday saw a number of exciting events and persons crammed the venue to witness several records being broken and also some photo finish races.
Winston Caesar of Upper Demerara (District No. 10) avenged his defeat in the boys’ U-20 long jump by turning in a record-breaking performance in the triple jump.
Caesar, who also has the Inter-Guiana Games (IGG) title, recorded 13.73 metres to set the new mark erasing the previous record of 13.54m set in 2006 by fellow Lindener Curtis Gravesande at the Georgetown Cricket Club ground.
Second was District No. 6’s Clavern Beresford 13.22m and Jermaine Durant, North Georgetown, third with 12.68m.
Parish Cadogan of District No. 10 continued to show his superiority in the boys U16 long and high jump events winning both categories easily.
The national champion leapt to 5.40 metres beating West Demerara’s Andre Bernard 5.11m and Rolain Casey of District No. 5, West Coast Berbice, 4.90m into second and third place respectively.
In 2007 at the Guyana National Stadium at Providence, Cadogan set the U14 high jump record of 1.50 metres.
He returned this year to win the U16 category soaring to 1.62 metres.
Steve Alexander of New Amsterdam was second (1.50m) and Shakeem Gentle, 1.45 metres, of North Georgetown, third.
Over on the track it was a memorable day for Alika Morgan, Carlton Halley and Jervina Straker who each won the 800 and 1500-metre double.
For Morgan, it was a stroll in the park as she won the girls’ U-20 800m in two minutes, 27.3 seconds. Corentyne’s Melissa Albert, 2:34.4s was second and Beverly McCracken, 2:36.5s of Rupununi, third.
The U20 girls’1500 metres was basically a Sunday afternoon jog for Morgan who strolled to victory in five minutes, 03.9 seconds.
Beatrice David of Rupununi was second (5:27.1s) and Corentyne’s Melissa Albert third (5.32.9s).
Hometown hero Halley certainly did not disappoint the scores of persons who turned up at the Albion Community Development Centre ground to watch him and the middle-distance athlete responded with two blistering wins.
Halley led the pace in the boys’ U20 800 metres from the sound of starter Lyndon Wilson’s gun and he outsprinted the field in a tight finish clocking an even two minutes.
Upper Demerara’s Tyshon Bentick (2:01.6s) and North Georgetown’s Joshua Griffith (2’:02.1s) were second and third respectively.
Halley returned in the boys’ U20 1500 metres but this time the judges had their work cut out for them as Halley and a pack of hungry looking youngsters came crashing to the finish line.
With his fans screaming and cheering Halley was adjudged the winner in four minutes, 30.3 seconds.
District No. 5’s Quinn George 4:30.9s was second and Kevin Balley 4:32.7s, third.
Junior CARIFTA games gold medalist Straker registered two but effortless wins in the girls’ U16 800 metres ahead of Pauline Ambrose of District No. 9 and Nicola Bobb of West Coast Berbice.
She also won the girls U-16 1500m in five minutes, 12.7 seconds with Onecia Bacchus, 5:23.5s, second and Onessa Moore, 5:26.3s, third.
Damel Felix of District 9 capped the day’s 1500 event with a record breaking performance.
Felix’s time of four minutes, 29.7 seconds places him in the record books of the school championships as he eclipsed national champion Ricardo Martin’s time of four minutes, 36.4 seconds which he set last year at the National Stadium.
Meanwhile, Chaves Ageday will go for the sprint double today when he competes in the 200 metres boys’ U20 event and, with defending champion Treiston Joseph ruled out of the race with a groin injury, winning is almost certain.
