Competition tight for places on Carifta discus team

MISTAKES WILL be costly in the girls’ under-20 discus at this week’s Carifta Trials.

According to Wayne Stewart, who coaches the throws at Camperdown High School, anyone who leaves their best form at home will pay.

“When you look at it,” Stewart predicted at last week’s Corporate Area Championships, “all eight top girls can win. Anybody makes the mistake and doesn’t come with their A-game will lose, right. So it is very, very, very, very tense this year, stiff competition.”

The favourite is Cedricka Williams of Holmwood Technical, the number two under-20 thrower in the world this year, at 53.38 metres. Two other Jamaicans, Stewart’s student Brittania Johnson and Damali Williams of Edwin Allen are in the world top 20, at 15 and 17, respectively. They are both over the World Under-20 Championships qualifying distance of 48.50 metres, with throws taped at 48.65 for Brittania and 48.51 for Williams.

Holmwood’s Williams and Johnson went one-two at the King of the Ring throws carnival on February 26 with 47.18 and 46.47 respectively, and Stewart thinks his athlete has a good chance to represent Jamaica at the Carifta Games in Kingston next month.

“That’s what we’re working on. She’s working on it also, and it’s hard work, but when I look at it, you have Cedricka Williams from Holmwood and Damali Williams from Edwin Allen. She threw 48.51, so we’re looking at both,” he said.

JAMAICANS BELOW THE 40-METRE MARK

There are several other Jamaicans beyond the 40-metre mark. They are Johnson’s twin sister Brittanie at 45.70, the St Jago pair of Abigail Martin at 45.26, and Tafada Wright at 42.19, and Shamoyea Morris of Excelsior High at 43.76.

This is a group of familiar foes. Last year, in the ISSA/GraceKennedy Boys’ and Girls’ Athletics Championships Class Two Discus, the Holmwood heroine won, ahead of Williams of Edwin Allen, Britannie, Wright, and Martin, with Brittania in eighth place. Beyond that, the Williams girls went 1-2 for Jamaica in the under-17 category at the Carifta Games in 2019.

Coach Stewart was speaking as Johnson was completing a victory over Brittanie at the Corporate Area meet last Friday, throwing 45.44 to beat her foe, who had a best of 42.90 metres. She added the shot put title with a meet record of 14.50 metres.

Their main goal is the World Under-20 Championships in Cali, Colombia, in August.

“I’m looking forward to Champs so far and definitely to the World Juniors. That’s the main thing for us, not saying that we’re not looking forward to Champs. But we’re in the right step and the right mood, getting there, you know, because this week is really hard work for them, so we never expected anyone to have a big throw. We’re looking forward to Carifta Trials next week to come and qualify for that,” said the coach after the weekend excursion.

The Trials will be contested at the National Stadium, starting on Friday, March 11 and ending on Sunday.