Early warning from Jamaicans ahead of World Champs

The World Athletics Championships to be held in Budapest, Hungary, August 19-27, is just over three months away, and many Jamaican athletes are pacing themselves well with several ranked in the top three of their respective events and jumpers Jaydon Hibbert and Ackelia Smith sitting in the number one spot at the world level.

Last weekend, Jamaican athletes attending United States colleges produced several big performances at the various NCAA Division 1 Conference Championships, with Hibbert grabbing the spotlight for the University of Arkansas at the South East Conference meet in Baton Rouge.

The former Kingston College (KC) star, who celebrated his 18th birthday earlier this year, has moved from strength to strength in his first year at Arkansas, winning the NCAA Indoor title in the triple jump and then stepping up a notch last Saturday with a world-leading mark of 17.87 metres in the event, where he has been unbeaten so far.

His winning effort, which also broke the world record at the under-20 event level, saw him overtaking Eugene World Championships silver medallist Hugues Fabrice Zango of Burkina Faso who has a season’s best of 17.81m. Hibbert’s winning mark is the second best by a Jamaican in the event behind the 17.81m by three-time Olympian James Beckford. Hibbert’s mark would have been good for silver at last year’s World Championships behind gold medallist Pedro Pichardo of Portugal, who won with 17.95m.

Former Edwin Allen High jumper Ackelia Smith, who represented Jamaica at the World Championships last year, had the country’s other top mark at the Big 12 Conference Championships in Norman, Oklahoma, where she had double success in the long and triple jump while representing the University of Texas.

Her winning mark of 7.08m in the long jump was good enough to displace former world leader, American Tara Davis Woodhall. Woodhall has a season’s best of 7.07m. Both women are the only two to have gone over six metres in the event this season.

Wayne Pinnock, Hibbert’s teammate at the University of Arkansas and also a former KC standout, made it a good weekend for Jamaicans in field events. Competing at the SEC Championships, Pinnock produced a personal best 8.37m to land the long jump title. He rose to number two in the world behind Jaswin Aldrin of India, who has a season’s best 8.42m. Pinnock’s mark was also the third best all-time by a Jamaican behind Tajay Gayle with 8.69m and Beckford’s 8.62m.

With World Championships 100m hurdles silver medallist Britany Anderson out for the season due to injury, former World Under-20 champion Ackera Nugent appears ready to step up to the next level this season.

Competing for her new school, the University of Arkansas, after transferring from Baylor University at the start of the season, she was in immaculate form in the event at the SEC Championships. In an epic battle in the 100m hurdles final, Nugent was edged out at the finish line by Alia Armstrong of Louisiana State University. Armstrong clocked 12.40 seconds to win the event, and Nugent was second in a personal best and World number three time of 12.43. World number one, Masai Russell of the University of Kentucky, was third in 12.47. Russell’s world-leading time is 12.36.

World Championships 100m silver medallist Shericka Jackson is the other Jamaican ranked in the top three so far this season. Her winning time of 10.82 at the National Stadium recently sees her holding down the number three spot here. American Sha’Carri Richardson, who recently defeated Jackson in the Doha Diamond League, is the world leader with 10.76. Marie-Josee Ta Lou of Cote d’Ivoire is at number two with 10 78.

Two other Jamaicans, sprinter Oblique Seville and high jumper Lamara Distin, are ranked at number four in their respective events.

Seville has a season’s best of 9.95 in the men’s 100m while Distin, the Commonwealth Games high jump champion, has a season’s best of 1.95m.