The Tribune

By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

Veteran sprinter Debbie Ferguson-McKenzie has decided to concentrate only on the 200 metres for the 2012 Olympic Games. However, in preparation for the trip to London in August, she went back down to 100m to work on her speed.

Leading a quartet of Bahamians at the 2012 Meeting Region Guadeloupe in the Stade de Baie-Mahault in Guadeloupe, Ferguson-McKenzie clocked 11.29 seconds for a fourth place finish behind a trio of Americans. It was a season’s best performance for Ferguson-McKenzie who improved on the 11.44 that she ran in Coral Gables, Florida, on April 14.

Winning the race in Guadeloupe was American LaShauntea Moore in 11.11, well ahead of compatriots Jeneba Tarmoh (11.24) and Lauryn Williams (11.26).

Also on the track, former world champion Avard Moncur, making a comeback as an individual contender, had to settle for the seventh and final spot in the men's 400m. His time was 46.39. It was also a season's best.

Another former world champion, American LaShawn Merritt, fresh off his impressive come-from-behind victory over Chris “Fireman” Brown on the final leg of the men's 4 x 400 relay in the Penn Relays in Philadelphia last weekend, won the race in a world-leading time of 44.73. The previous world’s best was 44.92 by Great Britain's Martyn Rooney.

Luguelin Santos of the Dominican Republic got second behind Merritt in 45.29 and American 400 hurdler Angelo Taylor got third in 45.31.

On the field, Leevan “Superman” Sands picked up a third place finish in his specialty in the men's triple jump. His best leap in the competition came on his third attempt at 16.79 metres or 55-feet, 1-inch.

Sands, who opened the season with 16.90m (55-5 1/2) on April 21 in Auburn, also posted leaps of 16.41m (53-10 1/4) on his first attempt, 16.61m (54-6) on his second and 16.48m (54-1) on his sixth and final leap after scratching on the fourth and fifth jumps respectively.

American Will Claye won with a leap of 17.05m (55-11 1/4) on his final jump which dropped Sands to third. Cuban Osniel Tosca took second with 16.93m (55-6 1/2) on his second jump.

The other Bahamian in action was former world champion Donald Thomas who struggled, ending up in a three-way tie for fifth place in the men's high jump after clearing 2.10m (6-10 3/4) – the same height as American Jim Dilling and Mickael Hanany of France.

Thomas, however, dropped to the bottom of the pile on the countback where officials reviewed the athletes performances at each height.

Canadian Michael Mason won the event with 2.31m (7-7), which tied him with Hanany with the second best height for the year. Mason was followed by American Jamie Nieto with 2.25m (7-4 3/4) and Canadian Mark Dillon with 2.15m (7-0 3/4). Cuban Victor Moya was fourth with 2.15m (70 3/4) as he lost out in position on the countback.

On April 21, Thomas opened his season in Auburn with a leap of 2.26m (7-5) which would have given him second in Guadeloupe.

The next meet on the international calendar is the Jamaica International Invitational in Kingston – an IAAF World Challenge Meeting – on Saturday.

It's not known which member of the Bahamian quartet will compete.

The elite athletes are using the meets as tune-ups for the Olympics.