LEAP OF FATE

PARIS, France:

Wayne Pinnock ended Jamaica’s near-three-decade wait for another Olympic medal in the men’s long jump on Tuesday, earning a silver to increase the island’s medal tally at the Paris Games to four.

Pinnock’s leap of 8.36 metres in the final at the Stade de France landed him in the company of Jamaica’s only previous medallist in the event, James Beckford, who also won a silver medal in Atlanta in 1996.

He was unable to wrest the title away from Greece’s Miltiadis Tentoglou, who mounted a successful defence with an 8.48-metre jump. Italy’s Mattia Furlani got the bronze with an 8.34-metre effort.

Pinnock’s teammate and World Indoor Championships bronze medallist Carey McLeod finished 12th with a best effort of 7.82 metres.

While he hopes to eventually claim the ultimate prize, Pinnock said the silver medal made this Independence Day and his Olympic debut memorable, adding it to a World Championships silver he won last year in Budapest, Hungary.

“Words can’t explain the feeling. I always wanted to be an Olympian and my dream has come true. Unfortunately, I didn’t get the gold, but it is all in God’s plan,” he said.

Pinnock noted Jamaica’s increased strength in the field, with three of the four medals coming from events off the track.

“Over the past couple of years, I think Jamaican field events have shown the ability that we have – Tajay Gayle jumping 8.69m, McLeod 8.52m, and me, 8.54m, and also Shawn-D Thompson (8.51m),” he said, listing the personal bests of his and his Jamaican counterparts.

“We’ve got excellent athletes that can come out here and we can, for sure, get that first, second and third,” Pinnock added.

In other action on Tuesday, national champion Rushell Clayton and compatriot Shiann Salmon progressed to their first Olympic 400m hurdles final. Clayton won her semifinal in a comfortable 53.00 seconds, while Salmon ran a personal-best time of 53.13 seconds to advance as a non-automatic qualifier. Janieve Russell (54.65 seconds) did not advance.

Clayton, who had a businesslike performance in her semifinal, understands that to add to her Olympic medal collection, she must deliver a flawless race.

PROPER EXECUTION

“The only thing on my mind is executing a good race. When I come to championships, I don’t think about times, I think about placements; and in order to be in the top three, I need to execute properly,” she said.

Salmon was thrilled to have made it to the final in her first Olympic Games as an individual competitor, pleased with how far she has come.

“I knew that it was going to take a personal best to get there. I decided that whatever it took, I was going to be there. And with God’s help, I’m there,” Salmon said.

Gabby Thomas of the United States won the women’s 200m in 21.82 seconds, securing her first major global title. St Lucian Olympic 100m champion Julien Alfred was second in 22.08 seconds, and Brittany Brown of the United States edged out Great Britain’s former World champion Dina Asher-Smith for bronze in 22.20 seconds.

Jamaica’s Jevaughn Powell’s 44.91 seconds was not fast enough for him to advance to the final of the men’s 400m. Powell was the lone Jamaican in the semifinals after exits from national champion Deandre Watkin and Sean Bailey in the earlier rounds.

Ackelia Smith, with a best leap of 6.59m in the women’s long jump, advanced to her second Olympic final. Her Jamaican teammate Chanice Porter, with a best attempt of 6.48m, did not advance and confirmed her retirement from the sport.

Bryan Levell will be the lone Jamaican in the men’s 200m semifinals today at 1:02 p.m. (Jamaica time). Levell’s time of 20.47 seconds in the repechage round saw him advancing as a non-automatic qualifier. Teammate Andrew Hudson’s time of 20.55 seconds left him out of the qualifiers.

National record holder Adelle Tracey returns to the track on Wednesday morning for the 1500m repechage round after finishing in 13th place in her heat in a season’s best time of 4:09.33 minutes.

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