THE GOLDEN efforts were limited when it mattered most in the relays leaving Barbados’ junior athletes to play second fiddle once again to regional track and field powerhouse Jamaica by a mere four points.
Jamaica predictably dominated the relays to overtake the Barbadians and finish as champions for the second straight year with 516 points when the 16th biennial Caribbean Union of Teachers (CUT) Games climaxed at the A.O. Shirley Recreation Grounds in Tortola on Saturday night.
After holding a 25-point lead at the end of the opening day, Barbados failed to stave off the determined Jamaicans and ended on 512 points.
St Kitts were a distant third with 317 points while Antigua and Barbuda (299) and hosts British Virgin Islands (266) rounded out the top five finishers. The other participating countries were Anguilla (235), The Bahamas (157), Bermuda (114), Nevis (108), Grenada (83), St Lucia (64) and Cayman Islands (16).
Barbados had the consolation that one of their athletes, Malachi Harris was named as the victor ludorum after the Frederick Smith schoolboy emerged champion in the Under-11 Boys’ division.
On a day in which victories for Barbados were scarce, St Alban’s sprinter Shamari Addison won the Under-11 Boys’ 200 metres in 28.47 seconds.
The St Michael School wonder boy Darian Clarke completed the sprint double among the Under-15 boys, winning the 200 metres in a dead heat with Jamaican Daniel Chambers. The photo-finish camera could not separate them as both crossed the line in 22.71 seconds and shared the gold medal.
Queen’s College’s Nicholas Grimes won gold in the Under-15 Boys’ javelin with a throw of 43.47 metres while another gold medal came from the Under-9 Girls’ 4×100-metre relay quartet of Tia Applewhaite, Shaziya Scantlebury, Avielle Small and Aniya Nurse.
Barbados also earned a number of silver and bronze medals but suffered in the Under-15 girls’ division where Leilani Haddock (4.87 metres) and Jaliyah Denny (25.92 seconds) were both fifth in the long jump and 200 metres, respectively.
Sarah Belle, who surprisingly competed in the 800 metres, was eighth in 2:07.20 minutes.
The silver medallists were Jule O’Garro in the Under-9 Boys’ cricket ball throw (40.91 metres), Aaliyah Agard in the Under-13 Girls’ 200 metres (26.91 seconds), Tiara Stewart with a leap of 4.45 metres in Under-13 Girls’ long jump; Nathan Crawford-Wallis, who put the shot 12.91 metres among the Under-15 Boys, and Jamarco Gill with a leap of 5.16 metres in the Under-13 Boys’ long jump.
Bronze medals went to Crawford-Wallis in the Under-15 Boys’ long jump (5.93 metres, Shahada Headley in the Under-13 Girls’ shot put (7.09 metres), Gill in the Under-13 Boys’ 200 metres (26.04 seconds), Ziko Rogers in the Under-11 Boys’ cricket ball throw (49.16); Applewhaite in the Under-9 Girls’ 150 metres (23.45 seconds) and Samual Alkins, who clocked 2:07, 20 minutes in Under-15 Boys’ 800 metres.
Jamaica swept all the Under-11, Under-13 and Under-13 4×100-metre relays. Barbados’ Under-9, Under-11 and Under-15 boys and the Under-11 and Under-13 girls got silver while the Under-13 boys and Under-15 girls earned bronze medals.Â
The majority of the team members are due to return home today. (EZS)
