An organised team effort from the students of the country’s number one secondary school, Queen’s College (QC) propelled them to the pole position at Zone One’s Inter School Track and Field Championships for North Georgetown District Number 11 yesterday.
Maximum participation in each event allowed the determined QC track team to pull away from defending champions Richard Ishmael yesterday at the Police Sports Club Ground, Eve Leary. QC finished the event with 513 points while Richard Ishmael placed second with 468 points. Marian Academy willed their way into third place with 245 points with their team of multi discipline athletes while the Government Technical Institute (GTI) settled for fourth with 171 points ahead of last place finishers Kingston Secondary (160).
Stellar performances in the sprint events from Yonessa Fredericks, Jamal Sampson, Larissa Wiltshire and Arinze Chance helped QC decimate their opponents.
Fredericks cleaned up in the girl’s Under 18 sprint events winning the 100, 200 and 400m races in commanding fashion.
Fredericks is no newcomer to the scene, having benefited from regional exposure as a member of the QC relay team at the Barbados relay fair in the past.
Sampson also completed a clean sweep of the boy’s U-14 sprints with three impressive victories in the 100, 200 and 400m.
The races were not timed but Sampson looked to be one of the top prospects emerging at this level.
Caribbean squash star Larissa Wiltshire won the girl’s U-16 400m and Chance secured his lone victory of the day in the boy’s U-18 400m.
Chance, one of QC’s premier athletes, who is also a prospect for the 2013 CARIFTA Games, was upset in the 100m and 200m.
Despite a brilliant start in the 100m, Chance was caught by GTI’s Kevin Abbensetts after about 70m and he seemed to give up and settle for second place which was just enough for him to qualify for Inter Zones next Friday.
Keon Hatton (GTI) won the boy’s U-18 200m ahead of Chance, who struggled in the event where he was the outright favourite. QC’s Shamar Britton completed a sprint double with victories in the boys U-16 100 and 200m while his schoolmate Vivakash Persaud triumphed in the U-16 400m.
Kareem Naughton’s technique was impeccable as he stormed to victory in the U-20 100m.
Richard Ishmael’s star female sprinter Shamane Daniels of the Running Brave track club dominated the sprint events to qualify for Inter Zone while Sumanta Seas, Carlton Sears and Denzil Joseph, all of Richard Ishmael Secondary, won the 1500m in their respective age categories.
Orin Prince of Kingston Secondary School won the boy’s U-18 1500m while Colin Thompson, also from Kingston, won the boys U-12 1000m.
