Ricketts, Anderson in action today
Published:Tuesday | June 14, 2022 | 12:11 AM
World championship triple jump silver medallist Shanieka Ricketts and hurdler Britany Anderson will be the only two Jamaicans in action at the Paavo Nurmi Games in Turku, Finland, today.
The meet will be the final World Athletics Continental Tour Gold event before the World Athletics Championships which take place next month. With nine days until the National Trials, both will be targeting strong performances as they accelerate their preparations.
Ricketts will be competing in the women’s triple jump facing Dominica’s Thea LaFond who has won at her last two meets. Her season’s best is 14.53m. Ricketts’s last event was the Diamond League meet in Rabat, Morocco, on June 5, finishing in second place with a season’s best 14.43. LaFond won the event at that meet.
Meanwhile, Anderson will hope to continue her strong form in the first heat of the women’s 100m hurdles. She has yet to finish lower than second this season which included her runner-up spot in the Diamond League meet in Rome on June 9 in a season’s best time of 12.50 seconds. She was edged by Tokyo Olympics champion Jasmine Camacho-Quinn of Puerto Rico in a world-leading time of 12.37.
The previous event of the Gold tour, the New York Grand Prix which was held on Sunday, saw mixed results from the Jamaican contingent as they continued their preparations for the National Trials. Ackeem Blake finished second in the men’s 100m with a personal best of 9.95. It is his first sub-10 clocking of the season. America’s Christian Coleman won the race in 9.92.
Javon Francis finished second in the men’s 400m in 45.73 in his fourth 400m race of the outdoor season. American Tyler Terry clocked 45.70 to win the event. Jordan Scott finished third in the men’s triple jump with a distance of 16.69m.
Meanwhile, Briana Williams clocked 11.11 to finish fifth in the women’s 100m, a race that was won by American Aleia Hobbs in 10.83. Hobbs countrywoman, Sha’Carri Richardson, finished second in 10.85. Ashanti Moore finished seventh in 11.18.
World Championship silver medallist Danniel Thomas-Dodd placed second in the women’s shot put with a distance of 18.40m. American Jessica Ramsey won the event with a throw of 18.70m. Shiann Salmon finished third in the women’s 400m hurdles in 55.28 seconds while Chrisann Gordon-Powell was fourth in the women’s 800m in 2:01.82 minutes.
Andre Clarke was fifth in the men’s 400m hurdles in 51.17 while Damion Thomas placed sixth in the men’s 110m hurdles.