Gibson competitive, but short on records

Raymond Graham, Gleaner Writer

WITH the Gibson Relays being the first meet to be held on the new track, most fans turned up on Saturday with high expectations to see many records being broken.

Additionally, on the eve of the meet, Minister of Sports Olivia 'Babsy' Grange had boasted that the track was faster than the Berlin track.

Interestingly, Lucozade, one of the sponsors, had even increased its sponsorship from $500,000 to $800,000, to be shared among all record-breakers. But there were hardly any takers.

While it was competitive, only Jamaica College (JC) and Holm-wood Technical's Class Three 4x100 metres relay teams accounted for records.

The JC boys team wiped out their one-year record of 43.42 seconds with a 43.38 clocking, while Holmwood's quartet became the first Class Three female team to go under 46 seconds at Gibson, smashing Manchester High's five-year mark of 46.00 with an excellent 45.77 seconds.

There were five other records, all in individual events.

The University of Technology's Winston Barnes led the way. The former JC star removed Nesta Carter's 2003 record of 10.20 seconds with a new mark of 10.17, after winning his time-final.

Racers Kenroy Anderson, who won the other heat, also finished inside the old record, clocking 10.18 for second overall.

National senior 100 metres champion, Oshane Bailey, who was second to Barnes in his heat, equalled the old mark of 10.20, to be third overall.

New women's mile record

Former Queen's School athlete, Tanice Barnett, continued to make it a habit of breaking records at the meet as, for the third time in four years, the Commonwealth Games representative broke the women's mile record, as she erased her one-year mark of 4:59.20, running 4:57.21.

In the male equivalent, Shawn Pitter also wrote his name in the record books as he erased Evan Allen's 2007 mark of 4:11.37, clocking 4:11.30 to establish a new standard.

The other record on the track came in the men's 110 metres hurdles as former Morant Bay High hurdler, Hansel Parchment, competing for the University of West Indies (UWI), clocked 14.00 seconds to erase Markino Buckley's mark of 14.25 seconds, which was created in 2006.

Parchment's UWI teammate, Deuce Carter, the former Calabar High hurdler, was second in 14.11 seconds, also under the old record.

Kingston College's pole vaulter, Xavier Boland, also had a record-equalling performance, clearing 4.40 metres, the same mark set by former JC athlete, K'don Samuels, in 2009.

Despite not being able to compete at Gibson and at the GraceKennedy ISSA Boys and Girls' Champion-ships this year, former Oracabessa High athlete, Christiana Williamson, gave a good account of herself in the women's 100 metres Invitational, as she forced Carry Russell to dig deep in her reserves. Russell prevailed in 11.44 seconds, while Williamson clocked a personal best 11.49.

Dominican victory

In other individual results, the Cayman Islands' Dominique Missic, who represented his country at the last Commonwealth Games in the high jump, was victorious as he cleared the bar at 2.10 metres, the same height cleared by second-place Kimarki Absolom of St George's College, with Wolmer's Boys' Jason Lewis taking third with 2.05 metres.

In the female equivalent, Edwin Allen's Kimberly Williamson, who broke the national junior record at the Central Championships two weeks ago, won by clearing 1.80 metres. Wolmer's Girl's Israel Ramsey and St Elizabeth Technical's Peter-gaye Reid both cleared 1.75 metres for second and third, respectively.

There were also good results in the male and female long jump events. Wolmer's Boy's Ramone Bailey and KC's Jerome Wilson who are expected to have a battle royal among themselves for the Boy's Class One title at Champs, finished 1-2 as Bailey ( 7.28m) won ahead of Wilson (7.23m).

Camperdown High's Nickeava Wilson continued her impressive form, as she leapt 6.26m to take the women's Invitational ahead of G.C. Foster College's Nickeasha Beaumont (5.79m).