Holmwood’s Williams wins discus with record throw

PHILADELPHIA, Pennsylvania

They did not match the four wins by the boys on Thursday at the 2023 Penn Relays but Jamaica’s girls, led by a record throw from Holmwood Technical’s discus thrower Cedricka Williams, had three massive wins yesterday.

Williams, the defending champion in the Championship of America event, lost to St Jago High’s Abigail Martin at the recent Carifta Games in the Bahamas but was in a no-nonsense mood yesterday. She registered a meet record and personal best of 57.23 metres to erase the previous mark of 54.77m set in 2016. Martin was second with 54.54m as Camperdown High’s Brittanie Johnson ended third with 47.33m. Najhade Seymoure of Excelsior High was fifth with 45.47m.

Williams said she was motivated to win by her Carifta Games defeat.

“I was feeling a bit ill at the Carifta Games and I was very determined to get back on winning ways and I used that loss to motivate me,” she said.

Williams had high praise for her coaches.

“I must say a big thank you to my throwing coach Mr Dwight Jones who has really guided me well over the years and also to head coach Mr Dave Anderson for his continuous motivation over the years,” said Williams .

Both shot putter Brittania Johnson of Camperdown and triple jumper Jade-Ann Dawkins of St Jago High have been in awesome form all season where they have been unbeaten in their respective events and they continued with their winning form yesterday.

HEAVE OF 14.04M

Following her fourth-place finish in the shot put last year, Johnson went better by winning the event with a heave of 14.04m. Rochelle Salmon of Edwin Allen was third with 13.57m while Juliet Smith of Immaculate Conception was fourth with 13.09m.

Competing at her first Penn Relays, St Jago’s Dawkins produced a fine display to win the Championship of America triple jump with a distance of 13.02 metres.

Fourteen-year-old Aaliyah Willary of Rhodes Hall High came very close in pulling off a big win in the high jump. Willary, who was third in the Class Three event at the ISSA-GraceKennedy Boys and Girls’ Athletics Championships, outperformed her more senior rivals to finish second in the event where the top four athletes all cleared 1.70 metres. She was involved in a two-way jump-off for the top spot with Samantha Strydesky of Howell High, New Jersey. With both athletes failing at 1.73 metres the bar was lowered twice with Willary just losing out in the end after failing to clear 1.69m. Dejaunae Bruce of Edwin Allen and Shanniqua Williams of Wolmer’s Girls finished third and fourth, respectively.

Aaliyah Foster of Mt Alvernia High also had a top-three finish in the long jump with a distance of 5.78m with Richelle Stanley of St Elizabeth Technical fourth with 5.71m. Defending champion Avery Lewis of Friends’ Central, Pennsylvania, retained her title after a best of 6.21m.