By TENAJH SWEETING

Tribune Sports Reporter

tsweeting@tribunemedia.net

THE sixth edition of the DTSP Wolf Pack Track Classic saw the trend of athletes qualifying in field events continue while track athletes joined the count.

The one-day event brought out a number of top performances on Saturday at the original Thomas A Robinson stadium.

The 2024 Track Classic honoured Mrs Beverly Wallace Whitfield, one of track and field’s biggest supporters over the years.

Field

The field events were once again the star of the show for the third consecutive track meet on the Bahamas Association of Athletic Associations’ (BAAA) athletics calendar.

Anaiah Rolle, from Leap of Faith, managed to surpass the qualifying standard in the under-20 girls’ pole event as the lone competitor. She posted a mark of 2.70m which cleared the CARIFTA requirement of 2.60m in the event.

Despite not getting in as much training as she would have liked, Rolle put her nerves aside to unofficially qualify.

“At first I was nervous because I did not have much time to train but after a while I left it to God and put trust in my coaches and I came out here and qualified,” she said.

For the 16-year-old, the event was not as difficult due to her background in gymnastics. “I would say I don’t feel as though it is difficult because over the years of growing up, I did gymnastics so it was very easy for me. I didn’t find it as difficult as others may,” she added.

The pole vault performer intends to improve her routine by running faster with rhythm, and planting precisely.

Kenny Moxey Jr, of the Panthers Track Club, had a busy Saturday at the DTSP Wolf Pack Track Classic.

He earned a top position in three of the five events competed in and bested the CARIFTA standard in the under-20 boys’ pole vault.

The CARIFTA qualifying standard of 3.60m was not a problem for Moxey who notched 4.05m in the pole vault event as the only competitor.

Additionally, he took home a first place finish in the under-20 boys’ high jump with 1.85m. Anthony Sweeting, of X-Treme Athletics, posted the same distance and Noble Preparatory Academy’s Jarred Thompson wrapped up third with 1.65m. Moxey also got on the track for the under-20 boys’ 110m hurdles. He ranked third in the event with a time of 16.19 seconds.

Although he is working his way back from injury, Moxey was happy to put up a personal best and unofficially qualify for the event.

“I haven’t really had much practice on it but it was a good day. I was feeling it and the jumps just came easy. I have done it for some time now but I was a little rusty coming back from injury and I didn’t expect to match my PR but I did today,” he said.

He wants to make minor tweaks to his run up and practice more ahead of CARIFTA where he is hoping to compete in the octathlon. “For the rest of the season I aspire to PR in all of my events and maybe get one or two qualifications and hopefully be able to qualify for World Juniors,” he said.

Kaden Cartwright, who won the first gold medal for Team Bahamas at the 2023 CARIFTA Games, unofficially qualified to make his return to the regional competition in the under-20 boys’ javelin throw.

He threw a distance of 61.58m, a cut above the 59.07m qualifying mark for first place. A’Jai Culmer placed second with 45.46m and Ormand Gibson Jr, of Triple Threat Throws, came third with 40.79m.

Cartwright also took the second position in the under-20 boys’ discus throw with a distance of 44.40m. Robert Deal III and Tristan King, both from Blue Chip Athletics, secured the first and third positions.

The CARIFTA gold medallist said he wanted to get back on track as he is working his way back from an elbow injury that kept him out of action.

“Today just was basically an opening for the season. I wanted to try and get back in the rhythm of throwing because I have not thrown in a while but it was a pretty good day. I qualified last year and I was expecting to throw even further,” he said.

As far as his elbow is concerned, Cartwright is feeling a bit better but wants to get back into top form. “I am feeling better now. I am a little hesitant about the elbow but I am trying to get back and I am trying to get stronger,” he said.

Taysha Stubbs and Kamera Strachan were the top performers in the under-20 girls’ javelin throw event. Stubbs, of Air Assault, heaved at a distance of 44.23m for first place. Meanwhile, Strachan, who qualified at the T-Bird Flyers meet, threw at a distance of 40.44m. Both ladies easily surpassed the 39.75m CARIFTA qualifying standard.

CARIFTA silver medallist Dior-Rae Scott bested the CARIFTA qualifying mark for the third straight meet in the under-17 girls’ javelin throw. She first qualified at the BAAA Odd Distance Meet, followed by the T-Bird Flyers Track Classic and most recently the DTSP Wolf Pack Track Classic. This time around she secured a distance of 44.05m to finish as the top competitor.

Ahkeel Williams, who recently turned 13-years-old, put the throwers on notice in the under-17 boys’ javelin event. He pulled off a toss of 46.12m beyond the standard of 44.95m for the top finish. Despite the brilliant performance, Williams will be ineligible to compete at the 2024 CARIFTA Games due to age.

Jaylen Stuart, who unofficially qualified in the under-17 boys’ shot put event at the T-Bird Flyers meet, improved on his previous season best of 14.40m with 14.67m.

Track

Ishmael Rolle, of Swift Athletics, was the first athlete of the season to unofficially qualify on the track. He got the job done in the prelims of the under-17 boys’ 100m event. Rolle ran a scorching 10.77 seconds to lead all competitors and dip under the qualifying standard of 10.92 seconds.

The sprinter dipped under the mark once again in the finals, this time stopping the clock at 10.73 seconds. However, the time was wind-aided.

Kion Burrows also ran a swift time of 10.88 seconds in the same event for second place.

The finals had a wind-aided reading of 3.2 metres per second (mps).

Despite the windy conditions during the finals, the weather did not play a factor in the prelims for Rolle, who was relieved to get the early qualification out the way.

“It was good. I had to work on my start but other than that, I executed to the best of my abilities so I could make it to the team for CARIFTA. It feels comforting because CARIFTA is getting closer and because I know that I don’t have to work as much, but I know I still have to run to do my best at CARIFTA,” Rolle said.

Jahcario Wilson, of Bahamas Speed Dynamics, ran a blistering time of 14.37 seconds in the under-17 boys’ 110m hurdles. Wilson’s time was faster than the 14.87 seconds CARIFTA standard. However, the performance was wind-aided due to a reading of 2.9mps.

Next up for athletics will be the fourth Sonja Knowles Track Classic January 27-28 at the original Thomas A Robinson stadium.