Williams headlines Queen’s/Grace Jackson Meet today

Briana Williams, the 2018 World Under 20 double sprint champion, will line up in the women’s invitational 60m sprint event at the Queen’s/Grace Jackson Meet at the National Stadium today around 6:30 p.m. This is Williams’ first time competing locally this season. The 17-year-old, who recently went professional, is fresh off a personal best of 7.25 seconds when she finished second at the Clemson University’s Orange and Purple Elite Invitational meet in South Carolina, United States, two weeks ago.

Sprintec Track Club’s Natasha Morrison, who ran the preliminary round for Jamaica’s gold medal winning women’s 4x100m relay team at the World Athletics Championships in Doha, Qatar, will be Williams main opponent in the race. Morrison won the event at the Central Hurdles and Relays/GC Foster Field Events Meet after clocking 7.52 seconds last weekend. Her teammates Michae Harriot and Shashalee Forbes, as well as UWI Pelicans’ Jodean Williams are also down to contest the event.

Following his fourth-place finish at the same meet, MVP Track Club sprinter Nesta Carter will be hoping to improve on that placing as he will face the starter in the men’s equivalent. He will have the Sprintec quartet of Chadic Hinds, Andrew Fisher, and Everton Clarke to contend with.

Several other senior athletes who will be hoping to punch their tickets to this summer’s Olympic Games will be on show today in the men’s and women’s 200m. Sprintec’s World Championships 400m finalist Demish Gaye will lead the field among the men, with Jaheel Hyde of UWI Pelicans and Devaughn Baker of University of Technology also named for the race.

World Championships 4x400m bronze medallist and mixed relay silver medallist Tiffany James-Rose will contest the women’s equivalent, which will also has Doha 400m hurdles bronze medallist, Rushell Clayton of UWI Pelicans, and Sprintec’s Dawnalee Loney competing.

Reigning ISSA/GraceKennedy Boys’ Athletics champions Kingston College (KC) and former champions Calabar High School are expected to field large teams at the meet. One of the events which will attract much attention is the Class One Boys 200m. Sprinters Roshaun Rowe and Oshane Peart will lead the charge for KC, while pole vaulter Renaldo Savoury and sprinter Rosean Young will be the two top men from Calabar. Jamaica College’s Michali Everett and Andre Bent will also feature.