The Tribune

By TENAJH SWEETING

Tribune Sports Reporter

tsweeting@tribunemedia.net

THE sixth edition of the William “Knucklehead” Johnson Cross Country Invitational saw athletes come out in droves to compete at the Bahamas Golf Federations’s (BGF) Baillou Hills Sporting Complex Golf Course on Saturday morning.

The competitors ranged from under 7 up to under 20. The long distance event also included an open category for men and women.

William “Knucklehead” Johnson was present at the cross country invitational and was excited about the direction long distance running is headed here in The Bahamas.

“We have a lot of talent here and, as you can see, even the little ones seven and up were out competing and it bodes well for the future of distance running in the country. We are getting there and we can see the improvement in the programmes. We are trending in the right direction. I endorse events like this 100 per cent,” Johnson said.

Melvinique Gibson, of the T-Bird Flyers track club, led the pack in the under 20 girls’ event. She ended the race first with a time of 15:59.92. Michal Bullard, of Power Athletics, earned the second position in 16:59.59. Third place went to Tellica Seymour of Kingsway Academy. Seymour stopped the clock at 17:56.62.

Raywind Winder, of the Hurry Murray athletics track club, crossed the finish line first for the under 20 boys. He ended the race in 10:23.51. Fabian Sautil, of the Phoenix track club, came in a few seconds behind with a time of 10:23.74 for second place.

Cartlon Johnson, representing CR Walker Senior High School, collected a third place finish in 11:09.81.

Hurry Murray was atop the overall team results for the under 20 boys’ category.

The athletics club finished with a total score of 33 points.

CR Walker Senior High School followed behind for second with 41 points and CV Bethel Senior High School had 52 points in third.

Rupert Gardiner, the event’s organiser, was impressed with the turnout at this year’s cross country invitational.

“I feel good about the event. The turnout by the clubs and schools that came out to the William Johnson Cross Country Invitational was simply excellent,” Gardiner said.

With this past weekend’s cross country event being the second one hosted this month, Gardiner is hoping to see someone break Johnson’s 1500m national record of 3:45.72 in the long distance event in the future.

Yulianis Akompi, of Quick Step Athletics, got the job done in the under 17 girls category. She won the race after notching 9:07:04. Power Athletics’ Jihah Mortimer trailed behind for second place with 9:13.53. Akaree Roberts, of the Road Runners track club, settled for third with a time of 9:15.88. CV Bethel took the under 17 girls division with a total score of 22 points.

Hurry Murray once again won a category this time it was the under 17 boys. The top three spots in the event were claimed by the club as well. Ross Martin distanced himself from competitors and wrapped up the event first in 7:23.52. Breck Kemp earned second behind his fellow club mate with 7:37.03. Meanwhile, Gabriel Johnson nabbed third in 7:43.64 to claim the final podium position. The team won the under 17 boys overall results with 15 points. CR Walker had 50 points for second and CV Bethel totaled 77 points for third.

The Hurry Murray success train continued into the under 15 girls division. Additionally, the team won the overall results with 25 points. Jade Knowles, of DTSP Wolf Pack, bested her competitors in 9:11.35. Ramonique Mclennon and Breynice Kemp, of the category’s overall winning team, earned second and third place respectively.

Nathan Walker, of Fast Forward Athletics, collected the first place finish for the under 15 boys. He ran through the line clocking 7:38.69 in the win. Dario Butterfield, of Noble Preparatory Academy, and Deontay Rolle of LW Young Junior High School, came second and third.

LW Young emerged as victors in the overall results for the previously mentioned category. Second place went to Patrick J Bethel High School, from Abaco, and third belonged to DW Davis Junior High School.

Patrick J Bethel High School competed in their second cross country invitational this month and coach Kenteeshe Williams said the exposure and competition really helps the athletes.

“They were excited, they came enthused and for some it was their first time off the island in a while. It is about exposure and competing at the same level as their counterparts on other islands and from other schools in The Bahamas,” Williams said.

Unique Athletics earned the top spot in both the under 13 boys and girls event. Ayden Russell took home bragging rights for the boys and Victoria Aguilar won for the girls. The team finished second behind Hurry Murray in the overall results. TA Thompson Junior High School placed third.

In the under 11 boys division, the Road Runners track club won with a total of 19 points. Meanwhile, TG Glover amassed 36 points.

The next cross country events will be the second Patrick J Bethel Cross Country Invitational on October 28 in Abaco and the Government Secondary Schools Sports Association (GSSSA) Cross Country Championships on November 4.