The Tribune

By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

THE Bahamas Association of Athletic Associations (BAAA) is expected to send a 9-12 member team, comprising of just one female - and for the first time a team for the men’s 4 x 400m relay - to the International Amateur Athletic Federation’s World Indoor Championships next month.

Julie Wilson, manager of the team, said the numbers could increase but it all depends on whether or not any other athlete meets the qualifying standards before the official deadline on March 7. The actual championships are set for March 17-20 in Eugene, Oregon, better known as “TrackTown USA.”

“We expect the team to be a relatively small team with a minimum of nine people and a maximum of 12 as we stand at the moment,” said Wilson, who noted that she was extremely delighted to have been selected by the BAAA to manage the team and to work with the athletes.

“The preliminary entries are ready, but the final entries don’t have to be in until March 7 and so people do have this opportunity over the next few weeks to still attain a qualifying standard, which would make them eligible for selection. A selection committee will review the people on the list and a final decision will be made shortly before March 7th.”

Although there are a number of athletes who would have qualified from last year, Wilson said one of the requirements is that the athletes must prove their fitness during 2016 and the majority of them have done that.

There are a few, she noted, who have not competed yet for the year and in those cases and one or two other circumstances, will not be competing.

Sprinter Tynia Gaither is the lone female named to the team. She is expected to compete in the women’s 60m. Devynne Charlton, who is attending Purdue University, has also qualified in the women’s 60m hurdles, but she opted not to travel because of her commitment to school.

Sprinter Warren Fraser has also qualified to compete in the men’s 60m, but he withdrew due to an injury.

Those expected to compete on the men’s side are Adrian Griffith and Shavez Hart in the men’s 60m, Michael Mathieu and Alonzo Russell in the men’s 400m and Donald Thomas in the men’s high jump. There is also the possibility that Jamal Wilson, who has also qualified for the Rio Olympics, might be included in the field of 12 competitors for the men’s high jump.

The Bahamas will also be fielding a team in the men’s 4 x 400m and Mathieu, Russell and Hart are expected to join Chris ‘Fireman’ Brown, LaToy Williams and Ashley Riley.

With the relay team, coach Peter Pratt said the good thing is that they will get to Eugene two days before the championships get started so they should have some time to develop some synergy with the relay team. While the Bahamas has always done well in the relay outdoors, this will be only the second time that a team will be fielded for indoors.

“We should expect a practice time on the track and during that practice time, we will try our best to be on time so that we can get our slot in,” Pratt said. “Then we will have to work somewhere else on getting our synergy after we finish the first practice because I think each country will be allowed a specific amount of time on the track. So we will have to find the best possible way to make it work.”

Once they put the right combination together on the track, Pratt said he’s confident that the Bahamas will turn in a credible performance in the relay. But he noted that because a lot of the countries will be preparing for the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in August, it’s going to be very difficult to determine how well they can do.

“We just have to do our best,” he said.