media_artricles :: 2016

Athletics Year in Review

As Trinidad and Tobago’s most prolific track and field stars gear up for yet another Olympic season, the pressure is mounting on this nation’s athletic prospects.

Injuries and poor form hindered some of the leading athletes while there were a few impressive showings and potential shown by youngsters.

Topping the list of performances over the past 12 months was none other than reigning men’s Olympic javelin champion, Keshorn Walcott. The 22-year old reset his own and National record on two occasions with the first coming in June at the NGC/Sagicor National Championships. Walcott launched the spear a distance of 84.84m on his first attempt breaking his own Championship record in the process. Twelve days later, TT’s second ever Olympic gold medallist increased his overall distance by over five metres when he launched the spear to 90.16m at another leg of the Diamond League in Lausanne, Switzerland.

He then followed up with a gold medal performance at the Pan American Games two weeks later with a throw of 83.72m. The Toco native was however sub-par at the World Championships held in China and failed to even qualify for the final.

Having shown the ability to throw 90m, Walcott remains TT’s highest hopes of a medal at the 2016 Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Meanwhile, young quarter-miler Machel Cedenio continued his mesmerising surge of athleticism up the ranks. The 20-year old started off his 2015 campaign in fine style capturing silver (44.36s) and a personal best (pb) time behind current Olympic 400m champion Kirani James at the Cayman Islands Invitational. The promising runner continued in good stride by winning the men’s 400m (44.97s) at the Ponce Grand Prix, Puerto Rico (May 23) and following up with another win in the same time, at the Diamond League Grand Prix in Stockholm, Sweden (July 30). The Presentation College (San Fernando) graduate then went on to become TT’s lone double medallist at the Pan American Games in Canada, grabbing silver (44.70s) in the 400m, and then teaming up with Renny Quow, Jarrin Solomon, Emmanuel Mayers to win gold (2:59.60) at the same meet.

However, at the NGC/Sagicor National Championships where he was billed to drub the field, Cedenio did just that, but was soon stripped of his victory having stepped out of lane during his 400m performance. He was part of the national quartet (Renny Quow, Lalonde Gordon, Deon Lendore) which clinched silver at the World Championships as TT continue to show its mettle in the relay events.

Lendore has been in top form competing for his Texas A&M University on the American track circuit. After closing off 2014 as winner of the prestigious Bowerman Award (highest accolade to the year’s best student-athlete in American Collegiate track and field, Lendore had a wonderful start to 2015. He won gold (9:34:30s) in the Distance Medley Indoor - Fayetteville Razorback Invitational, USA, as early as January 30, then produced another golden showing (45.38s) in the 400m at the Fayetteville Tyson Invitational (February 13).

Lendore seemed to gain great confidence with these two early victories and began to pile on the gold medals by winning the 4x400m indoor (3:02:86s) with his school team at the Fayetteville NCAA Division 1 Indoor Championship (March 14); 4x400m (3:02:19s) Austin Clyde Littlefield Texas Relays (March 28); 200m (21.04s) Palo Alto Standford Invitational (April 4); 400m (44.41s) Starkville SEC Championship (May 16); 4x100m (45.77s) Starkville SEC Championship (May 16) and the 400m (45.77s) FloTrack Throwdown in Oregon (August 8). Like Cedenio, Lendore seems destined for greatness during this hectic year of track and field.

Additionally, female shot putter Cleopatra Borel continued to lead by example after recording another successful competitive year. Having copped the 2014 First Citizens Sports Foundation Sportswoman of the Year, Borel launched to her first international medal of 2015 when she hauled the sphere a distance of 18.41m to grab bronze at the IAAF World Challenge Meetings in Japan (May 10). She then placed sixth (18.32m) at the Shanghai, China, leg of the Diamond League (May 17), but showed improvement by holding on to silver (18.80m) at the Birmingham, England, leg.

Her performances here saw Borel move into the top six overall on the world leading list. As is customary, Borel (18.46m) retained her national women’s title in June and then launched to a well-deserved pb distance of a 19.26m at the Won Istvan Gyulai Memorial, Hungary (July), also attaining the meet record. Borel also showed grit on the Diamond League circuit after just missing out on a top-three finish in Paris, placing fourth (19.07m). At the Pan Am Games however, Borel proved to be the best female shot putter in the region when she powered to her first gold (18.67m).

The national women’s 4x100 team of Kelly-Ann Baptiste, Michelle Lee Ahye, Semoy Hackett and Reyare Thomas also created history with a silver medal at the World Championships in a national record time of 42.03 seconds.

It was the first ever women’s relay medal this country has ever won at the World Championships.

Also part of the women’s relay squad but not running in the final was rising star and USbased Khalifa St Fort. Backed by four-time TT Olympic medallist and personal coach, Ato Boldon, St Fort was among two young track stars selected for the IAAF World Youth Championships (July) and was the only one to medal. She clocked a pb time of 11.08s to grasp silver in the girls’ 100m event. Prior to this, in May, the former San Fernando-based sprinter recorded the third-fastest (11.43s) wind legal 100m time in the US on her way to victory in the Golden South Classic (Florida).

Meanwhile, 100m ace Michelle Lee Ahye, did not have a good individual year compared to 2014, but she has been nursing some injuries. She sprinted to bronze (11.13s) at the Shanghai leg of the Diamond League on May 17 then followed up with a golden (11.05s) performance at the Beijing edition two days later. She then followed up with another third (11.22s) place finish at the NACAC Senior Championships in Costa Rica. However, the dreadlocked athlete is hoping for an improved 2016.

Additionally, 2015 national sprint queen Kelly-Ann Baptiste, made a welcomed return to the local and international circuit. In January, Baptiste’s case for testing positive for a prohibited substance was resolved after serving a ban. She went on to win gold at the National Championships and even qualify for the 100m final at ‘Worlds’ where she placed a credible sixth.

However, the male sprinters were not as impressive this year with no major international medals coming out of the camp. The notoriety of seasoned campaigners such as Richard ‘Torpedo’ Thompson and Keston Bledman were sidelined this year, as both athletes tended to injuries. Hurdler, Jehue Gordon also had a rough year with his best international performance being fifth place in the 400m hurdles at the Madrid World Challenge (July).

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