FIVE sprinters achieved qualifying times for the 2024 World Athletics Under-20 Championships (formerly World Juniors) and joined 31 other compatriots who also attained Carifta Games standards at the Hasely Crawford Stadium in Mucurapo on Saturday, at the 2024 NAAATT Carifta Trials.
Those securing World U20 Championship qualification were Simplex's Kadeem Chinapoo in the U17 boys 100m, Zenith's Alex Henry and Concorde's Symphony Patrick in the U20 girls 100m and Cougars' Dylan Woodruffe and Simplex's Hakeem Chinapoo in the U20 boys 100m.
Kadeem was first to better the World U20 standard when he won semifinal three in 10.52 seconds, surpassing the 10.55s requirement. He went on to win the final in 10.58s but also achieving Carifta standards were Phoenix Athletics' Cameron Powell and Memphis Pioneers' Kaeden Herbert and Shane Camejo.
From as early in as their first heat, each sprinter dipped below the 11.03 Carifta standard.
In the U20 girls, Patrick clocked a blistering 11.73s to win heat four of five in the preliminary round. Her time bettered the 11.78s World U20 and 11.81s Cartifta standards.
Henry sealed her World U20 time by winning semifinal one in 11.76s. also picking up Carifta times here were Abilene Wildcats' Kadija Pickering (11.79s) and Simplex's Kaziah Peters (11.79s).
In the final, Patrick improved to win in 11.67s while Henry (11.70s) and Pickering (11.79s) rounded the top three.
In the U20 boys, Woodruffe and Hakeem, Kadeem's brother, made an early statement as they both notched World U20 times by capturing the one-two finish in heat eight of ten in the preliminary races.
Woodruffe clocked 10.46s and Hakeem 10.55s, both successfully measuring up to the 10.55s standard. Stallion's Che Wickham (10.56s) was third in this heat to seal Carifta (10.60s) qualification.
Achieving Carifta standards in the semis were Memphis' Russell Jamario (10.60s) and Simplex's Mikhail Byer (10.59s) in the final. The final was won by Woodruffe in 10.49s, followed by Byer and Wickham (10.61s) respectively.
In the field events, seven athletes attained Carifta qualification.
Memphis Naomi Pierce had a positive start to her day as she leapt to 5.45m in the U20 girls' long jump, surpassing the 5.42m requirement.
Burn's Peyton Winter (35.49m) and Mercury's Addalia Sylvester (34.02m) threw the 1kg U17 girls discus beyond the 32.94m Carifta distance while Concorde's Tenique Vincent (1.62m), Zenith's La'Shiya Biggart (1.59m) and QRC's La Queen Welch (1.56m) matched or surpassed Carifta's 1.56m height in the high jump.
Additionally, D'Abadie's Adrianna Quamina threw the 1kg disc 40.82m in the girls U20 discus and Winter sealed another Carifta spot in the U17 shot put with a 13.82m haul.
Day two of TT's Carifta trials continues at the same venue from 10am on Sunday.
Other Carifta Qualifiers
Girls U17 100m hurdles - Jenna Thomas (13.84s, IG Fastlane); Tenique Vincent (14.78s, Concorde)
Boys U17 110m hurdles - Tyrique Vincent (14.43s, Concorde); Omari Brown (14.48s, Neon Wolves)
