FROM THE PUBLISHER

Champs 2016 was good to the last drop
with spine-tingling performances.
Once again, the high drama that was
on display supports the view that the key
rivals rarely flinch from battles. Calabar High
School is still basking in the afterglow of their
victory and with five consecutive victories
now under their belt, the lumbering giant in
local track and field is aiming to add another
title to its collections.
The Red Hills Road-based team has remained
undeterred this season despite sounds from
the critics that their winning dynasty will end
at Champs 2017. Hot whispers continue to
permeate the air that a new champion will
emerge. The world will, no doubt, have a
frontline view of this spectacle of an event
via live streams. They will get a chance to
witness the actions as they unfold, of the
hottest high school track and field event in
this part of the hemisphere.
A litany of changes implemented recently has
now placed greater restrictions on athletes
participating at Champs. This has set off a
firestorm of debates in the public spheres.
The changes are presumably designed to
thwart exploitive actions against athletes.
But they have been met with block wall
resistance from a gauntlet of coaches and
other mainstream sports purists. A middle of
the road position has been ostensibly arrived
at, but the issue does not appear it will get
total unanimity in the short run. The debates
therefore rage on.
From all indications, Calabar and Kingston
College are on a collision course. KC is
making a move to restore lost pride as their
defeat in 2016 was particularly galling. The
North Street Team is sublimely confident
they will turn the table on the defending
champions. Their long spell in the wilderness
serves as a stark reminder that they can illafford
to enter Champs with sleep-walkers’
confidence, instead, would need to dig in
their heels for the victory.
As fans gear up to shout from the tailpipe, one
can expect the usual throwing of gibes that
commonly draws good-nature camaraderie.
Join us once again as we journey through
the pages of Boys Champs’ Preview. Read
the hot predictions as well as the stimulating
event-by- event commentary of what is
expected to be unravelled at Champs 2017.
LONG JUMP CLASS II
Record: Paul Thompson (Munro) – 7.70m (1998)
PURPLE BLAST OFF
1. S. Lowe (K. C.) ________________________
2. W. Pinnock (K.C.) ________________________
3. T. Johnson (C.H.S.) ________________________
4. M. Wellington (J.C.) ________________________
5. L. Reid (C.H.S) ________________________
6 D. Tomlinson (Gr.Isl.) ________________________
7. M. Beecher (J.C.) ________________________
8. J. Christian (Cl.C.) ________________________
FINALISTS
Shaquille Lowe is the only returning finalist
from last year having placed sixth with a leap
of 6.76m. Two years ago, Lowe produced
7.03m at a development meet and returned
this season with another big leap of 7.05m. The
latter was done at the Anthwick Corporate Area
Development Championships where he edged
his team mate, Wayne Pinnock, into second
place. Pinnock also went over the 7-meter mark
for first time in his career, registering a leap of
7.02m. Both athletes aim to give KC a rollicking
start aimed at mounting a serious challenge for
the Mortimer Geddes Trophy.
SEASON’S BESTS: Pinnock (K.C.) – 7.25m, Lowe
(K.C.) – 7.09m, Tomlinson (Gr.Isl.) – 6.81m,
Johnson (C.H.S.) – 6.72m, Reid (C.H.S.) – 6.62m,
44
Wellington (J.C.) – 6.60m, Walter (Cl.C.) –
6.57m, T. Segree (Munro) – 6.55m.
LONG JUMP CLASS I
Record: Leon Gordon (Vere) – 7.87m (1987)
SILKY SMOOTH AND CONSISTENT
1. C. McLeod (K.C.) ________________________
2. D. Creary (Wol.) ________________________
3. P. Dudley (J.C.) ________________________
4. D. Bogle (C.H.S.) ________________________
5. S. Coke (K.C.) ________________________
6. G. Allen (C.H.S.) ________________________
7. S.Willis (J.C.) ________________________
8. T. Dunn (Munro) ________________________
FINALISTS
Carey McLeod has risen like a phoenix from
the ashes. The former Garvey Maceo athlete
emerged from relative obscurity, becoming a
brass ring of an iconic star. Undefeated among
his peers for the 2017 track season, McLeod
has set the bar extremely high with a string
of top draw performances. At the Youngster
Goldsmith Athletic Classics, he won with a huge
leap of 7.50m ahead of his team mate, Shakwon
Coke, who posted 7.05m. He was the best
placed schoolboy at the Gibson/McCook Relays
when he registered 7.47m. He returned to win
convincingly at the Corporate Area Champs to
complete a trifecta of victories. Dameon Creary
returned to his Heores Circle base after doing
a one year stint at KC. A fourth-place finisher
last year, he is set to mount a challenge for the
gold medal and his 7.30m leap to win at the
Camperdown Classics, has provided enough of a
morale booster for him to achieve this.
SEASON’S BESTS: McLeod (K.C.) – 7.55m, Creary
(Wol.) – 7.30m, Coke (K.C.) – 7.27m, Bogle (C.H.S.)
– 7.21m, Allen (C.H.S.) – 7.12m, Palmer (Mona)
– 7.04m, McFarlane (K.C.) – 7.03m, Thompson
(St.G.C.) – 6.99m.
POINTS SUMMARY ON
WEDNESDAY NIGHT
KC has predictably raced into the lead and seems
set to vindicate the experts’ pronouncements
that a post to post victory is on the cards. On
29 points after two events, the North Streetbased
school is determined to ease the long
spell of relatively flat performances that have
kept them in the wilderness since their 2009
victory. Coach Neil Harrison believes he has
found the winning formula and the unabated
dominance of his charges this season, is the
smoking-gun evidence that victory may become
a reality for the purples. Calabar is currently in a
better position than they were last year at this
juncture, which should bode their chance well to
successfully defend their title.
Points Summary: K.C. [29pts] C.H.S. [18pts]
J.C. [15pts] St. J. [0pts]