The Tribune

By BRENT STUBBS

Chief Sports Editor

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

OLYMPIAN Charisma Taylor and high school sensation Terrell McCoy were among the top Bahamian performers during a series of meets in the United States of America over the weekend.

Meanwhile, in the debut of the newly formed Grand Slam Track in Kingston, Jamaica, fellow Olympic hurdler Denisha Cartwright and sprinter Terrence Jones produced varied results in their specialties. 

Pepsi Florida Relays

At the Percy Beard Track in Gainesville, Florida, Taylor won the women’s 100m hurdles Olympic development race in a time 12.02 seconds, beating out a field that saw Brandee Johnson, competing unattached, take second in 13.14. 

Taylor, 25, is on her quest to the World Championships in Tokyo, Japan, in September. She’s coming off her double appearance in the hurdles and the triple jump at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

Terrell McCoy, an 11th grader at The Bolles School, was third in the girls’ shot put with a heave of 42-feet, 8 3/4-inches or 13.02 metres on her fourth try. 

In surpassing the qualifying performances for the CARIFTA Games in Trinidad & Tobago over the Easter holiday weekend, McCoy had throws of 39-8 (12.09m) on her first attempt, 39-5 1/4 (12.02m) on her second, 39-11 1/2 (12.18m) on her third and 41-3 1/4 (12.58m) on her sixth after scratching the fifth. 

J’Nia Simpson, also an 11th grader at Temple Catholic, won the event with 44-8 1/4 (13.62m). Julia Lemmon, a 12th grader at Fort Myers, was second with 43-10 ¾ (13.38m) . In the discus, McCoy was also third with her best toss of 148-1 (45.15m). on her second throw. She did 123-0 (37.49m). on her first and 140-5n (42.80m) on her third, only to scratch her next three attempts.

This time, Lemmon won with 157-7 (48;05m). on her fifth attempt.  Hannah Hoffman, a 12th grader at Eastside was second with 149-1 (45.44m) .

Also, on the field, Kaiwan Culmer, now being trained by Bahamian Olympic bronze medalist Leevan ‘Superman’ Sands, placed fourth in the men’s triple jump invite with 52-7 1/2 (16.04m) on his second attempt.

It was his only mark posted after he scratched his first try and the third and fourth, before passing the fifth and again fouling the sixth.

Sean Dixon-Bodie, competing unattached, had the winning keep of 55-0 (16.76m) on his third attempt.

And national record holder Keyshawn Strachan, a transfer to Nebraska, got back on the field in the men’s javelin with a best heave of 243-1 (74.11m) for sixth place. 

Strachan, working his back from an injury, had two other legal throws of 229-3 (69.89m) on his first and 241-8 (73.67m) on his sixth, but scratched the second, fourth and fifth.

Marc Anthony Minichello, competing unattached, won with 2711- (82.63m) on his third try. 

Back on the track, Grand Bahamian Cassie Thompson, a junior at Jacksonville, was 11th overall in the collegiate women’s 100m in 11.45. Camryn Dickson, a junior at Texas A&M, won the race in 11.11.

In the women’s 200m, Thompson came back and placed seventh in 23.07n with Shatayla Dorsett, a sophomore at Georgia Southern was 21st in 23.65. Dejanea Oakley, a junior at Georgia, won in 22.43.

Two Bahamians contested the same heat of the women’s 400m with Cassidra Thompson, a senior at Jacksonville, taking the tape in 52.81 ahead of Grand Bahamian Olympian Qunicy Penn, a sophomore transfer at Florida, who trailed in 53.03 for second. 

They, however, finished ninth and 123th overall with JaMessie Ford, a sophomore at South Carolina, winning the event in 50.43.

Another Grand Bahamian, Zion Campbell, a junior at Minnesota, won his heat of the men’s collegiate 100m in 1031 for 11th overall. The winning time was 9.87 by Abdul-Rasheed Saminu, a junior at South Florida.

Campbell came back in the 200m where he was second in his heat in 20.96 for 18th overall. Dario Matau, a senior at Auburn, won the event in 20.49.

And in the men’s collegiate 110m hurdles, Oscar Smith, a senior at Louisiana Tech, ran 14.04 for 13th overall as he missed advancing to the final.

Grand Slam Jamaica

Denisha Cartwright, coming off her appearance at the World Indoor Championships, competed in the Grand Slam Track in the women’s short hurdles that comprised of the 100m hurdles and the 100m.

Competing as a member of the Challengers’ team, Cartwright finished sixth in the women’s 100m hurdles in 12.96 at the National Stadium in Kingston, Jamaica on Friday.

The 25-year-old Olympian came back on Saturday and got fourth in the 100m in 11.74 as a part of the women’s short hurdles event to collect a total of eight points to place fifth in the standings and a cash prize of $20,000.

American Tia Jones clocked 12.63 to win the 100m hurdles race in a world leading time. Jamaican Danielle Williams was second in 12.70, American Olympic champion Masai Russell was fifth in 12.78.

Williams, however, came back and won the 100m in 11.54 to finish with 12 points for victory in the two events combined for a hefty cash prize of $100,000.

Jones got sixth in the 100m in 12.26 to combine for 15 points to cart home $50,000 for second place. Ackera Nugent, fourth in the hurdles in 12.75 and second in the 100m in 11.57, finished in third place overall with 13 points for $30.000. 

Puerto Rico’s Jasmine Camacho-Quinn, third in both the 100m hurdles in 12.70 and the 100m in 11.73, was fourth overall with 12 points for $25,000.

And Grand Bahamian Terrence Jones, the men’s co-national record holder in the 100m in his comeback after an injury last season, competed in the men’s short sprints for the Challengers as well.  

The 22-year-old came sixth in the 100m in 10.26 and eighth in the 200m in 20.79 to end up in eighth place with four points.  

American Kenny Bednarek pulled off the sprint double in the 100m in 10.07 and the 200m in 20.07 to top the list with 24 points for his $100,000. Great Britain’s Zharnel Hughes trailed Bednarek with 12 after he got second in the 200m in 20.37 and third in the 100m in 10.13.

The Gland Slam League was started to provide an avenue for professional athletes in the Western Hemisphere to compete against each other. 

While it got started in Jamaica, the league will run through September heeding into the World Championships. The league is being organized by American multiple 200/400m Olympic and World Championship medalist Michael Johnson.

The league will continue in Miramar, Florida at the Ansin Sports Complex in Miramar, Florida from May 2-4; head to the Franklin Field at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania from May 30-June 1 and then at the Drake Stadium in Los Angeles, California from June 27-29.

Athletes are competing for cash prizes from the purse of $262,500 in each of the four venues mentioned above.

Miramar Invitational

After making his appearance at the World Indoor Championships, quarter-miler Wendell Miller kicked off his outdoor season in the men’s 300m at the Miramar Invitational at the Ansin Sports Complex.

Miller came through with a comeback victory in the 300m B final in 33.45 for third overall. American Rusheen McDonald won in 32.39 with Great Britain’s Toby Harries second in 32.47 in the A final to finish ahead of Miller. 

And Bahamian Olympic sprinter Ian Kerr ended up 12th in 10.32 after he came in fifth in the men’s 100m B final. Jamaican got a sweep of the top two spots with Rohan Watson running 9.99 and Yohan Blake in 10.06.

Masked Rider Open

New Mexico’s sophomore Amari Pratt got second in her heat of the women’s 100m in 11.95 for third place overall at the Fuller Track and Field Complex in Lubbock, Texas. 

Pratt came behind Success Umukoro, who won in 11.69 and Oluwatumininu Sanyaolu, second in 11.95.

Also at the meet, Antonicia Moultrie, representing Garden City in her sophomore year, placed second in the women’s 400m hurdles in 1:05.36. Nour Rahou of South Plains, Texas, won the race in 1:01.03.

Moultrie, who also plays basketball, was also 12th in the women’s long jump with her best leap of 15-1 1/4 (4.60m) on her second attempt. She fouled her first and third tries.