media_artricles :: 2016

Ahye runs in record time 7.09 seconds

T&T sprinter Michelle-Lee Ahye set a new national record of 7.09 seconds to make it into the semi-finals of the women's 60 metres at the IAAF World Indoor Championships at the Oregon Convention Centre in Portland, USA, yesterday.

Ahye won heat four with ease, finishing ahead of Britain's Dina Asher-Smith (7.12) and Gloria Hooper of Italy, who ran a personal best of 7.29 to take the final automatic qualification spot.

"I'm very happy about it. I was expecting it to happen, but not in the first round," Ahye was quoted saying on the IAAF website.

Kelly Ann Baptiste ran her season's best 7.20 to finish third in the first heat of the dash which was good enough to take her into the semi-finals and hopefully into the final. Both races were scheduled for last night.

Quartermilers Deon Lendore and Lalonde Gordon both advance to the final of the men's 400m event. Lendore crossed second in the first semi-final in a time of 46.23. He followed Grenadian Bralon Taplin (45.38) to the line with Kenya's Boniface Mweresa running a season's best of 46.33 to take the third and the final qualification spot.

Gordon held on for third in the second semi-final in a time of 46:03 to nab his place in the final. He was also quoted as saying afterwards: "There's still work to do." With both Gordon and Lendore making the finals of the men's 400m dash, which was set for late last night, the quartet of Rondell Sorrillo, Jarrin Solomon, Ade Alleynne Forte and Machel Cedenio, in that order did well to advance to the final of the men's 4x400m relay when they finished third in heat one in a time of 3:07.83. The final is set for this evening.

Sorrillo failed to progress out of the 60m event, placing sixth in 6.68 in the first semifinals heat. Eventual winner was Trayvon Bromell, who became the first US athlete to claim the men's world indoor 60m title in six years with a personal best of 6.47.

Bromell, who almost didn't make it through to the final at last weekend's US Indoor Championships after finishing fourth in his semifinal, was the first man out of the blocks in lane three and maintained his lead throughout to prevail over Jamaica's Asafa Powell (6.50) and Ramon Gittens of Barbados (6.51), respectively.

Over on the field, Ayanna Alexander fouled on all three her attempts in the women's triple jump event. Yulimar Rojas only got in one valid jump but it was all that was needed for the Spain-based jumper, coached by Cuban long jump great Ivan Pedroso, to get Venezuela's first world indoor title. Her second round effort of 14.41m notched up her country's first medal at this competition of any hue.

Late last night, "Sportswoman of the Year" Cleopatra Borel was to compete in the final of the women's shot put and hurdler Mikel Thomas will be hoping to clear all his hurdles to get into the semifinals when he was to run in lane two of heat four.

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