Thompson, Powell steal the spotlight at Jamaica athletics meet

Kingston, May 9: Wins by Elaine Thompson, Asafa Powell and Kemar Bailey-Cole highlighted the 13th staging of the Jamaica Intertiol Invitatiol athletics meet at the tiol Stadium.

Thompson eased away from a quality field to win the 100m in a wind assisted 10.71 seconds while America’s English Gardener placed second in 10.85, ahead of Michelle-Lee Ahye of Trinidad and Tobago who clocked 10.98 seconds here on Sunday, reports CMC.

Bailey-Cole stunned a top-class field to win the 100 metres in 10.01 seconds, followed by Mike Rodgers of the United States in 10.03.

Jamaica’s Julian Forte took the third position in 10.06 while Andrew Fisher with 10.07 was fourth and American 2007 world champion Tyson Gay placed fifth in 10.08.

Jamaica’s double Olympic 100m champion Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce did not show for the 200m, won by Shaue Miller of the Bahamas in 22.14 seconds.

Annesha McLaughlin-Whilby was second with 22.79 while American Shalanda Solomon took third spot clocking 22.80. Powell, a crowd favourite in Jamaica, won the 200m in 20.45 seconds ahead of Bejee Lee of America in 20.52, and Jamaica’s 2014 Commonwealth Games champion Rasheed Dwyer, also in 20.52 seconds. Powell’s 200 metres run was a rare venture over a distance in which his persol best was 19.90 seconds, achieved in 2006. Quarter-miler Javon Francis closed out the evening with an ordiry performance to win the 400m in 44.85 seconds.

Meantime American Gwen Berry and Trinidad and Tobago’s Shakeil Waithe captured the women’s hammer throw and men’s javelin.

Berry set a tiol Stadium and meet record with a throw of 73.82 metres in the hammer, American, Jene Stephens McCall (71.06m), was second, and Britain’s Sophie Hitch (70.65m), third.

Waithe had a winning throw of 76.30m in the javelin. The United States duo, Riley Dolezal (76.26m) and Cypress Hostetler (74.25m) took second and third while Jamaica’s Orlando Thomas (69.92m) was sixth. IANS