By TENAJH SWEETING

Tribune Sports Reporter

tsweeting@tribunemedia.net

IN three days the World Athletics Relays will return to paradise at a newly renovated Thomas A Robinson National Stadium.

Following a seven-year hiatus, the Olympic qualifying event will be back at its original home in The Bahamas and is set to host 893 of the world’s top athletes from 54 countries May 4-5.

A major aspect of the World Relays’ preparations have been the ongoing repairs at the Thomas A Robinson National Stadium.

According to Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Local Organising Committee (LOC) Drumeco Archer, the national stadium is ready for the grand showcase scheduled for this weekend.

“We have all of the lighting in place. There is a bit of balancing that is going on with the uprights. In the canopy, we have a whole light show. We are ready for a wonderful showcase.

“I know that there is currently installation of the stage on the infield, which is a unique feature of these events. Essentially, what you are seeing now is a lot of cleanup and it will happen over the next few days. I am happy with where we are and we are almost at the finish line,” Archer said.

The world’s top performers will have a chance to advance from “Paradise to Paris” at the facility which was upgraded at a cost of $36 million, thanks to the People’s Republic of China, confirmed by Minister of Youth, Sports and Culture Mario Bowleg earlier in April.

A new Mondo track surface was laid down and repairs were conducted to the Eastern and Western Grandstands to revamp the facility and facilitate the global event.

Athletes will be in action on the new track in five relay events, including the 4x100m relay (men and women), 4x400m relay (men and women) and mixed 4x400m relay.

The Bahamas’ World Relay team members were in action over the weekend including world indoor record holder Devynne Charlton. She finished second to Puerto Rico’s Jasmine Camacho-Quinn with a time of 12.64 seconds in the women’s 100m hurdles at the Wanda Diamond League Meet in Suzhou, China.

Also competing was sprinter Anthonique Strachan who wrapped up sixth in 23.35 seconds for the women’s 200m finals.

Camille Rutherford, a member of the women’s 4x100m relay team, clocked 11.22 seconds at the women’s 100m invitational.

The LOC CEO said based on the recent performances of the Bahamian athletes, he is expecting some good results.

“Devynne had an Olympic-class field and it almost felt like an olympic final and to see her running so incredibly well early in the season is promising. She is a part of the women’s 4x100m team and I cannot wait to see what that looks like. I am happy about the performances of our athletes. I always say that this is a global event but once again we will be punching above our weight class and we are looking forward to good results,” he said.

The World Athletics Relays will start with the pre-game show “Showdown in Paradise” at 4pm. The main event will begin at 6pm this Saturday and Sunday.

The top 14 teams at the event will automatically secure a spot in Paris, France for the 2024 Olympic Games. Teams will have two chances- day one and two- to book their tickets to Paris.

The Bahamas is hosting the Olympic qualifying event for the fourth time. The host nation was the home of the World Relays in 2014, 2015 and 2017 before it moved to Yokohama, Japan in 2019 and Chorzòw, Poland in 2021. After this year’s event, the renowned relays will make a stop in Guangzhou, China in 2025.