Nelda Huggins a shining example of what can be achieved with a combination of hard work and talent, was the leading light of the BVI's 2012 Track and Field season. photo credit: Cleave Farrington

Harrigan- Scott had a season dogged by injury, but was still the only athlete to qualify for the London Olympic Games photo credit: supplied

Chantel Malone, beat four Olympic qualifiers at some point without making the qualifying mark herself; Karene King in the 200 and Ashley Kelly in both long sprints both gave reasonably good performances during the year photo credit: supplied

The veteran Kim Collins, selected for his fifth Olympic Games had run consistently well and must have been thought of as a potential finalist, given his “big meet” history photo credit: supplied

“At the Youth Level Nelda Huggins extended her string of podium finishes at every regional event,” commented Mr. O’Neal. 

Medals also came from non-traditional disciplines through the Gumbs twin, Tynelle and Trevia in the girls’ throws and  Lakeisha ”Mimi” Warner in the 800 metres event. 

There was disappointment among the seniors, none of whom attained an Olympic qualifying mark, noted O’Neal “Chantel Malone, focusing on the 400 metres for the first time, beat four Olympic qualifiers at some point without making the qualifying mark herself,” adding that Karene King in the 200 and Ashley Kelly in both long sprints both gave reasonably good performances as well. 

Tahesia Harrigan-Scott, long the face of her country’s athletics had qualified for the Games a year earlier but injury kept her from performing anywhere near her peak. 

Summing the successes of 2011 which saw the O.E.C.S countries crown their second individual Senior World Champion in Kirani James, gain bronze medals at the Worlds through Kim Collins and the St.Kitts and Nevis sprint relay quartet as well as placing a finalist in a men’s field event for the first time at a global senior Championships, the year 2012 , according to O’Neal was somewhat disappointing for the region as a whole, despite some fine performances by several athletes.

The report also covers the Region’s other Islands.  

Anguilla could lay claim to one of the leading Youth sprinters in the region as Zharnel Hughes built on the promise shown a year earlier, lowering the island’s national records to impressive marks 0f 10.42 seconds in the 100 metres and 20.90 for the 200. 

He placed third in the 100 in the under-20 division at the Carifta Games and added a silver medal in the under-18 age-group at the C.A.C. Junior Championships. At the C.A.C. Juniors he won the 200 metre dash and went on to advance to the semi-finals in the 100 at the World Juniors.              

Dee Ann Rogers was perhaps one of the surprise medalists at the C.A.C. Junior Champs. She placed third in the heptathlon with 4,126 points, a Leeward Islands record. The score included a 15.55 clocking in the 100 m hurdles, an Anguilla national record.

Antigua and Barbuda –Daniel  Bailey, who had twice ranked among the top ten 100 metre sprinters in the world had what was for him a down year in 2012. His season’s best mark of 10.10 seconds paled in comparison to his performances of recent years although he did manage to reach the semifinals at the Olympic Games. He did approach his personal best in the 200 metres with a 20.60 season’s best in Jamaica.

Brendan Christian, another sprinter of international pedigree seemed to have disappeared but resurfaced in London, placing 4th in his heat of the 200 metres with a 20.63 clocking, which he lowered to 20.58 in finishing fifth in his semi-final.   

The two promising juniors of 2011 continued to progress, although Cejhae Greene moved past his colleague Tahir Walsh in the pecking order. Greene placed third in the 100 at both the Carifta Games and C.A.C. Juniors and ran an impressive 20.90 seconds for third in the CAC 200. He set a personal best of 10.46 in the 100 and was a semi-finalist in both events at the World Juniors. He will still be a junior in 2014.Walsh was fourth in the 100 at the CAC Juniors and had season’s bests of 10.57 and 21.36.                                                                                                    

Dominica’s athletes did not repeat their successes of the previous year. The undoubted star was junior sprinter Luan Gabriel, who captured Carifta gold in the 200 metres for girls under 17 and set a junior national record with her 24.12 clocking in the preliminary round at the Olympic Games.                               

Grenada   

If 2011 was the year that Kirani James established himself as a world-class athlete, in 2012 he stamped his name as potentially the greatest track and field athlete to have emerged from the small islands of the Eastern Caribbean. His overall body of work as a senior may still not have surpassed the achievements of Kim Collins of St.Kitts and Nevis but he is certainly in the conversation.   

After placing a disappointing 6th in the 400 metres at the World Indoor Championships in March James lost only one other race all year. His victory at the Olympic Games in London was significant on a number of fronts. It represented the first medal of any kind not only for Grenada but for the whole O.E.C.S. His 43.94 clocking was the fastest time ever recorded by an athlete not from the U.S.A. He also became the second athlete to have won the 400 metres before his twentieth birthday. James will become the first O.E.C.S. athlete to have topped the world’s statistical rankings in his/her event at year’s end.  James’ longtime comrade-at-arms Rondell Bartholomew did not fare so well in 2012. A finalist in the 400 at the Daegu World Championships he lost virtually all of the 2012 season to injury, although he did try to assist in Grenada’s attempt to qualify in the 4x400 metre relay. 

Another Grenadian male athlete made his mark individually in 2012 .For several years Grenadian multi-eventers had been prominent at the Carifta Games but few had gone on to great success at the senior level. Alleyne Lett, Keron Francis and Joel Phillip had all done well at the collegiate level in the United States but each had eventually specialized in an individual event. Kurt Felix seemed to be cut from a different cloth, however and seemed determined to be the first O.E.C.S. athlete to qualify for a global decathlon event. He scored 8,062 points to win the N.C.A.A. Division I title and over the course of the year improved his personal best in every decathlon event but the high jump and established national records in the pole vault indoors and out. He was on course for another national record in the Olympic event before withdrawing injured at the end of the first day. Felix’s younger brother, Lyndon Toussaint, won the Carifta heptathlon, so there may be a trend.     

Among the Grenadian women, two stood out in 2012. Janelle Redhead won the 200 at the O.E.C.S. Invitational in St.Kitts with a 23.21 clocking and went on to run 23.08 in finishing third in her heat at the London Games and advancing to the semi-final round. Kanika Beckles ran times of 51.72 and then 51.95 seconds in finishing second in the 400 at the Big 12 Conference Championships. Selected for London, she was unable to compete due to injury.                                                                                                      

St.Kitts and Nevis

2012 was a successful, if tumultuous year for athletics in the Federation. The veteran Kim Collins, selected for his fifth Olympic Games had run consistently well and must have been thought of as a potential finalist, given his “big meet” history. Unfortunately something went terribly wrong in London and he failed to appear for his 100 metre heat and was subsequently withdrawn from the Games. St Kitts and Nevis however is blessed with a cadre of sprinters who collectively are the best in the O.E.C.S. and the impact of Collins’ absence was less than it might have been.       

Jason Rogers had been a medalist or finalist at virtually every one of his regional and international competitions as a junior and at the NACAC Under-23 Championships in Mexico he came good, winning the 100 in 10.06 seconds. Antoine Adams moved into international class in 2012 as well, winning his National Championships in the 100 (10.10 seconds) and 200 (20.43). He advanced to the semi-final round of both sprints in London.        

B.J.Lawrence had enjoyed a breakout year in 2011 and started well in 2012 with a win at the N.A.IA. Indoor Championships over 60 metres. He ran season’s bests of 10.12 and 20.62 during the pre-Olympic period but competed sparingly and only ran the relay in London. Lestrod Roland was the revelation of 2012. A useful junior, who had often finished just outside the medals in regional meets, he lowered his bests to 10.30 and 20.67 at the National Championships and joined Rogers, Adams and Lawrence in lowering the national x100 metre relay record to 38.41 seconds in London, although they failed on this occasion to reach the final of the event.                                                                                                                                                        

Tameka Williams was her country’s shining star in the sprints for much of the season but was excluded from the team immediately after the Opening Ceremony of the London Games. The circumstances remain unclear but hopefully the matter will be resolved and she will continue her career, which blossomed in 2012. She ran legal times under 11.30 on three occasions and also broke the 23 second barrier in the 200 thrice. Her national record of 22.45 is the best ever by an O.E.C.S. athlete and her 11.18 clocking in the 100, also a national record ranks her third all-time among O.E.C.S. athletes.           

Among the juniors the Nevisian javelin thrower Adrian Williams won a bronze medal at the Carifta Games while 16 year old Renika Daniel, also from Nevis, did so at the C/A/C/ Junior Championships.                                                                                                          

St.Lucia  

As has been the case in recent years St.Lucia’s top performer in 2012 was a high jumper. However it was not C.A.C. champion Levern Spencer or World Championships finalist Darvin Edward who stood out, but rather 18 year old Jeanelle Scheper. After placing third at Carifta she went on to win the CAC Junior under-20 competition and placed 8th at the World Juniors, Her best mark of 1.85 m moves her up to third among O.E.C.S. jumpers.       

Spencer did not really have a bad year but never looked like the woman who was once a finalist at the World Championships. Edwards competed infrequently and was quite inconsistent when he did, not coming close to his achievements of the previous year.  

St.Lucia’s top home-based athlete was once again Albert Reynolds. The javelin thrower won his event at the O.E.C.S. Invitational and also established a new national record of 72.86m at a home meet in Vieux Fort. Pole vaulter Rick Valcin improved in the pole vault to 4.90m, a mark that is reasonably competitive at the regional level. Heptathlete Makeba Alcide set an indoor national record in the pentathlon but outdoors did not continue the progress shown a year earlier.

St.Vincent and the Grenadines 

Another of the sub-region’s countries with little to cheer about in 2012. The versatile thrower Adonson Shallow had apparently called it a day; Pamenos Ballantyne competed in no Championship road races at a full regional level and veteran sprinters Natasha Mayers and Kineke Alexander were well off their bests. Courtney Williams showed some promise in the 100 but still has work to do in order to make an impact regionally.