media_artricles :: 2015

St Fort, Hislop compete at Junior Champs

Carifta champions and an American-born sprinter will take centre stage at this weekend's NGC-NAAA National Junior Track and Field Championships.

Khalifa St Fort competes in Trinidad and Tobago for the very first time.

She will be in the spotlight at the Hasely Crawford Stadium in Port of Spain today and tomorrow as she chases the girls' under-18 sprint double and a place on the national team for the July 15-19 IAAF World Youth Championships in Cali, Colombia.

Though she is American, St Fort has a Trinidadian mother and is therefore eligible to represent T&T. Her coach is also Trinidadian, and a well-known citizen at that.

Ato Boldon is responsible for St Fort's progress in the past year, coaching her to an 11.43 seconds personal best in the 100 metres dash.

Thanks to that impressive clocking, St Fort is currently third on the 2015 world under-18 performance list.

Akanni Hislop is fifth on the global boys' under-18 200m list at 20.91 seconds—the clocking he produced to win the 2015 Carifta Games title. The Tobago sprinter is eighth on the 100m list at 10.47. Like St Fort, Hislop will bid for an under-18 sprint double this weekend.

Carifta Games boys' under-18 javelin champion Tyriq Horsford and boys' under-18 shot put gold medallist Isaiah Taylor will also be in action at Junior Champs, bidding for selection on the T&T World Youth team.

Jacob St Clair is also eyeing Cali, and would be keen to produce a fast run in today's boys' under-18 400m event.

St Clair is sixth on the global under-18 list at 46.73 seconds.

The under-20s are also vying for national selection this weekend.

The list of athletes hoping to be on the flight to Edmonton, Canada for the July 31-August 2 Pan American Junior Championships includes 2015 Carifta Games gold medallists, Kayelle Clarke (girls' under-20 200m), Andwuelle Wright (boys' under-20 long jump) and Portious Warren (girls' under-20 shot put), as well as sprint standout Jonathan Farinha.

Action at the Crawford Stadium today and tomorrow is scheduled to start at 9am.

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