Source: www.guardian.co.tt
By: Nicholas Clarke
With the world outdoor track and field championships in Daegu, South Korea less than one month away, 12 local athletes have attained the qualifying standards. Sprinters to lead the way with Keston Bledman (9.93), Richard Thompson (10.10), Aaron Armstrong (10.13) and Rondel Sorillo (10.18) all making the required mark of 10.18. Emmanuel Callender (10.19) and Darryl Brown (10.22) are just off. All six are expected to clash at the National Championships in two weeks time to determine the trio that will represent T&T at the world meeting. They are also likely to line up the 4x100m which has surpassed the standard of 39.20 with a 38.89 clocking in taking silver at the Central American and Caribbean Track and Field Championships in Mayaguez, Puerto Rico, on July 16.
Sorillo is the lone A qualifier in the 200m with 20.46 (standard-20.60). Among the ladies Kelly-Ann Baptiste (10.91), Hackett (11.17) and teenager Michelle Lee Ahye (11.22) have dipped under the 11.29 barrier. Baptiste is in form of her life with her 10.91 clocking in winning at the Diamond League meet in Paris, France where she defeated the 2007 World Champion and three-time Olympic gold medallist Veronica Campbell-Brown of Jamaica. Since lowering her national record to 10.84 in 2010, Baptiste has surpassed the standards several times so far and is currently fifth on the world ranking. Hackett set a new pb of 11.17 in May while Ahye most recently clocked 11.25 in taking the Pan American Junior title last weekend. Hackett also made the cut in the 200m (23.00) with 22.87 along with 19 year old Kai Selvon (22.97). The quartet is expected to feature in the 4x100m relay that has clocked 43.40 and 43.47 to qualify for Daegu (44.00).
Cleopatra Borel Brown and Jehue Gordon have bettered the requirement on numerous occasions. In the women’s shot put Borel set a new national outdoor mark of 19.42m to go well over the 18.30m mark and has hit 19 metres figure at two other outings. Borel lies seventh on the world rankings. Gordon bettered the 49.40 required with 48.92 last week at the Hampton Games. The 2010 World Junior champion also clocked 49.09 and 49.21 this season. Quartermiler Renny Quow and triple jumper Ayanna Alexander are in line for selection following their wins at the CAC Championships in Puerto Rico on July 15 to 17.
Quow took the men’s 400m title and will seeking to match his bronze medal performance in Berlin, Germany in 2009 while Alexander topped the field in the women’s triple jump. The duo along with Bledman, Hackett and Borel have meet another criteria following their CAC triumphs as area champions will be considered as A qualifiers in according to the International Association of Athletic Federations qualifying guidelines. Quow is also part of the men’s 4x400m outfit which sped to 3:01:65 in taking silver at the CAC Championships and dip under the 3:04:00 required to compete in Daegu.