ROAD TO CHAMPS | #CHAMPS22 KC’s Bedward aiming for upset win in shot put

The Class One boys’ shot put promises to be one of the most interesting events at this year’s ISSA/GraceKennedy Boys and Girls’ Championships (Champs), and Kingston College’s (KC) Altwayne Bedward is hoping to stand atop the podium at the end of the competition.

Bedward, who will be competing at Champs for the first time, is ranked third among his peers in the event this season, with a throw of 18.58 metres.

Edwin Allen High’s Christopher Young with 20.20m and Calabar High’s Kobe Lawrence, 19.86m, are the throwers ahead of Bedward this season.

Bedward, who moved from Munro College in March 2019, was forced to sit out last year’s championships after the competition was not held in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

He said that he has been competing regularly against Young and Lawrence at the various meets across the country, and therefore he is aware of what he needs to do to win the gold medal at Champs.

“I am having a calm feeling because I am not taking it too different from any other meet,” said Bedward.

“I have been competing with these guys for years but, unfortunately, not at the Champs level, and so I am going to take it easy and do what I have to do to win,” he said.

“I am very hungry to compete at Champs this year and I am always confident, but I always have a lot of respect for my competitors,” Bedward said.

He finished third in his last outing at the Carifta Trials with a mark of 17.53m behind Lawrence who won the event with a throw of 19.29m. Young was second with 19.27m.

Bedward stated that he knows that he will have to produce a personal-best mark to win the event.

“I always confident and I always feel that I can go into every competition and come out victorious and give my best effort,” he said.

“I am very happy that the fans will be back, because that is a good booster for us. You know that KC have a lot of supporters and I know that they will come out in their numbers to support us at Champs,” Bedward said.