The Tribune

By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

A 35-member team will represent the Bahamas at the 20th Central American and Caribbean Junior Track and Field Championships in Moreli, Mexico.

The Bahamas Association of Athletic Associations yesterday released the names of the team, made up of nine under-18 girls, 11 under-18 boys, six under-20 girls and eight under-20 boys, who are expected to compete July 4-6. The team manager is Laura Pratt-Charlton, assisted by Winston Marshall. The head coach will be Bernard Rolle. The team is comprised of the following:

Under-18 girls

Brianne Bethel, Jenae Ambrose, Serena Brown, Brashe Wood, Bria Sands, Charisma Taylor, Dreshanae Rolle, Andira Ferguson and Amber Ford                       

Under-18 boys

Keanu Pennerman, Tyler Bowe, Henri Delauze, Kinard Rolle, Tavonte Mott, Aaron Ross, Travis Ferguson, Blayre Fernander, Ken Mullings, Scharann Cash and Samson Colebrooke

Under-20 girls

Keianna Albury, Devynne Charlton, Talia Thompson, Mesha Newbold, Dannielle Gibson and Brendia Ferguson

Under-20 boys

Deedro Clarke, Cliff Resias, Ian Kerr, Khyle Higgs, Denzel Pratt, Ashley Riley, Xavier Coakley, Trae Carey and Laquan Nairn.

Looking at the team that has been assembled, Rolle said he’s confident that the Bahamas will be well represented at the championships.

“These are the best of the best,” Rolle said. “So I expect them to do very well.”If there’s any concern for the team, Rolle said it would be that when they leave the country, they will travel to Mexico and represent the Bahamas to the best of their abilities.

“We want them to focus on the task at hand, so I’m more concerned about their conditioning and the environment that they are in,” he said. “I think if they focus on what we are going there to do, which is to compete, and just do our best to adapt to the difference in the culture.

“I’ve watched our athletes, having travelled with some of them in the past on national teams, they could get distracted by the environment. But once we leave here focused on what we have to do, I don’t think we will have any problems when we get there.”

As a team, Rolle said the jumpers have been performing exceptionally well and he anticipates that the long and high jumpers will be leading the pack, along with the throwers and the sprinters, who no matter where the meet is held, rise to the occasion.

If all of the athletes do what they are expected to do, Rolle said the Bahamas should have a very good performance.

At the last championships in 2012 in San Salvador, El Salvador, the Bahamas finished in seventh place on the medal table with 28 medals, inclusive of five gold, 10 silver and 13 bronze. Jamaica dominated with 20 gold, 15 silver and nine bronze for their total of 44.

Blake Bartlett won double bronze in the under-20 boys 100 and 200m, Lathone Collie-Minns was a silver medallist in the under-20 triple jump, Desmond Major got silver in the under-20 boys decathlon and both the under-20 male 4 x 100m (Teray Smith, Anthony Farrington, Shane Jones and Bartlett) and the 4 x 400m team (Andre Colebrooke, Elroy McBride, Julian Munroe and Bartlett) came through with silver medals.

Teshon Adderley picked up a pair of bronze in the under-20 girls 800 and 2,500m, Devinn Cartwright and Kryshell Rolle won silver and bronze respectively in the 400m hurdles, Tamara Myers was the bronze medallist in triple jump, Racquel Williams and Cymore Hamilton were gold and silver medallists respectively in the shot put and the 4 x 400m relay team (Cartwright, Rolle, Rashan Brown and Adderley) got the silver.

In the under-17 boys division, LaQuan Nairn won the silver in the long jump with Trae Carey taking the bronze, Ashton Butler struck gold in the triple jump, Khyle Higgs bronze in the discus and the 4 x 100m relay team (Cliff Resias, Janeko Cartwright, Delano Davis and Rashad Gibson) were bronze medallists.

And in the under-17 girls’ division, Carmiesha Cox won gold and silver in the 100 and 200m, Devynne Charlton got a pair of bronze in the 100m and 100m hurdles, Taryn Rolle bronze in the triple jump, Brashae Wood bronze in the discus and the 4 x 100m relay team (Kadeisha Hield, Charlton, Makeya Whyte and Cox) got the silver.

The Bahamas has produced a few record holders in the championships. The latest feats were produced by Shaunae Miller in the girls’ 400m in 53.39 seconds, Lathone Collie-Minns in the under-18 triple jump with a leap of 15.20m and the 4 x 400m relay team of Michael Lockhart, Andre Wells, Ashley Riley and Stephen Newbold in 3:16.20. All three records came in 2010 in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.