By Dean “The Sportsman” Greenaway
Tiondre “Dre” Frett cemented his status as the BVI’s most successful Carifta Games U17 Boys sprinter, when he landed 100/200m silver medals during the 52nd edition in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago, while Jah’Kyla Morton returned to the podium and secured an U20 Girls High Jump bronze.
Paul Hewlett established a Decathlon Youth Record and in the process equaled the Youth 110m Hurdles record and established a Youth Pole Vault record.
Frett began adding to the BVI’s 67 medals, when he became the first U17 Boy to earn a Carifta Games 100m silver on Saturday, as BVI had three athletes in three different divisions of the 100m finals for the first time in its history.
Frett, who had a bad start, missed striking gold by .05 seconds, when he stopped the clock at a personal best of 10.58 seconds +(0.0) meters per second, splitting the Jamaican pair of Michael Graham’s 10.53 and ahead of Jaydon Collins’ 10.68. He chopped his previous best of 10.74 heading into the games and climbed from a No 10 tie on the All-Time List with Alliston “Al” Potter and moved to No 9. Frett became the second U17 Boys 100m medalist behind Jaleel Croal’s bronze in 2019.
Running into a -1.4 meters per second headwind, J’Den Jackson used a personal best of 10.52 seconds to place sixth in the U20 Boys 100m final. He dropped his March 6 best from 10.63 second and moved from No 11 to No 7 on the All-Time List, after running 10.65 to advance. Along with fellow U20 athlete Mario Carter, who ran a non-advancing personal best of 10.78 in the semis, the No 11 All Time mark in the century, it marked the first time that three sprinters had broken 11.00 seconds at Carifta.
On Monday, Frett, earned a 200m silver and added to the 100m silver, to become the territory’s most successful U17 Boys sprinter, after winning 200m bronze last year at 15—the youngest to do so. Frett ran a personal best 21.52 seconds, in a race that had a 0.2 meters per second wind, the =No. 14 All Time mark. He had a windy 21.30 in the semis.
“It was a pretty good race,” said Frett, who ran from lane five. “I had the Bahamas guy in lane
three and the third fastest dude in lane eight (Jamaica’s Jaydon Collins) and said I had to pick down everybody on the curve, but I knew that the Bahamas dude was going to be a problem.”
Tied for fifth and missing a medal a year ago, Jah’Kyla Morton returned to the High Jump podium when she cleared 1.70m (5’7”) and earned an U20 Girls bronze medal.
“It means a lot seeing that last year, I had a really bad year and I really wanted to come out here and get a medal in the under 20 division,” said Morton who got silver and bronze medals as a U17 Girl. “I was really happy when I cleared 1.70 on the first go, because your position depends on count back, so my main objective was to clear the first height on every attempt.”
The BVI’s medal tally climbed to 70 since 1978, including 62 individual medals and eight relay medals. In all, girls have won 37 medals since 2005 and boys 24 since 1978. In all, five medals have been won in Port of Spain and two in Barcolet, Tobago. It also marked the sixth time that three medals have been won in a Carifta Games, including 2006, 2007, 2014, 2015, and 2016.
Finalists
Jackson clocked 21.42 to finish sixth as in the 100m, in the U20 Boys event. He ran a personal best of 21.34 (-1.0) to advance and climbed from No 14 to No 10 in the All Time List.
M’Kenzii Crabbe had a sixth-place finish in the U17 girls 200m final, which she ran in 24.40 seconds, after also finishing sixth in the 100m final in 12.22 seconds (0.2) after a personal best of 11.99 in the semis and became the 17th BVI woman under 12.00. seconds.
Along with Frett, it marked the first time that the BVI had an U17 Boy and Girl100/200m finalist in the same competition.
Youth Records
Hewlett scored 4952 points and placed eight in the Decathlon, establishing a Youth Record. He began by running 17.07 seconds (-1.2) to equal Aliston “Al” Potter’s 110m Hurdles Youth Record set on June 17, 2009, also in Port of Spain. He also Pole Vaulted 2.75m (9’0½”) to set another Youth Record.
Non Advancing
100/200m Heats. U17 Girls: 5th Macayla Logan, 12.85 (+4.1)/26.13(-1.9) Boys: 4th Ty’Rique “TyTy” Charles, 11.20, (0.0)/200m false start. U20 Girls: Taryn Augustine, 5th 12.20 (1.0)/4th 24.69. 7th Shannia Johnson, 12.49 (-0.9). 5th Crystal Daly, 25.08 (-3.0).
400m. U17 Girls: Sam’Asia Leonard missed the final by a spot with the ninth fastest time of 59.22 seconds. U20 Boys: 8th Jaheem Lennard-Joseph, 51.80. 800m Heats: Jahrime Allen, 5th 2:06.19. Jonathan Lynch, 6th 2:01.44.
Field Events:
Shot Put U20 Girls: 4th Savianna Joseph, 13.52m (44’4¼”). Personal best. No 3 on the BVI All-Time List. 7th Romeena Davis, 10.09m (33’1¼”). High Jump U17 Girls: 8th Jameila Chambers ,1.45m (4’9”).11th Deniel Clarke, 1.45m (4’9”). Long Jump: U20 Girls. 9th Crystal Daly, 5.47m, (17’11¼”) -0.9. 12th Shyra Stoutt, 5.23m (17’2”)-1.9. Boys: Jabari Pemberton, 6.54m (21’5½”)1.9. Discus Throw: 6th Kijana Callwood, 40.37 (132’5¼”). 8th Makeda Christopher, 30.97 (101’7¼”).
Multis:
Heptathlon: 5th A’Sia McMaster, 4114 points. Day 1: 100m Hurdles, 15.27 (0.5). High Jump, 1.51m (4’11½”). Shot Put, 10.51m (34’5 ¾”) 200m 26.89 (0.4). (2722). Day 2: Long Jump, 5.21m (17’1”) Javelin Throw, 27.16m (89’1½”) 800m 3:01.05).
Decathlon. 8th Paul Hewlett, 4952 points. NYR: Day 1.100m 12.06 (-1.1). Long Jump, 5.55m (18’2½”). Shot Put, 10.71m (35’1¾”). High Jump, 1.64m (5’4½”). 400m, 55.54. (2732). 110m Hurdles, 17.07 (-1.2) (=NYR). Discus Throw. 30.28m (99’4½”). Pole Vault, 2.75m (9’0½”) NYR. Javelin Throw, 21.77m (71’5½”) 1500m 5:06.99.
4x100m Relay:
U17 Boys: After winning its heat in 42.71 seconds, the U17 Boys team of Charles, Frett, Lashawn Gibbs and Othniel Gillings, was disqualified for passing out of the zone. Girls 4x100m Relay quartet of Logan, Crabbe, Clarke and Leonard, were sixth in the final with a time of 47.52 seconds, after finishing third in their heat in 47.80 seconds.
U20 Boys: Carter, Jackson, Shamaul Donovan, Latriel Williams, 7th 42.18. Heats: 4th 41.72.
U20 Girls Cristal Daly, Taryn Augustine, Shannia Johnson and Shyra Stoutt, were seventh in 47.64. U20 Boys 4×4 team of Lennard-Joseph, Lynch, Latriel Williams and Allen, had a non-advancing fifth place finish in 3 minutes, 27.83 seconds.
