Local track and field athletes will get their second and final chance to book a spot on the national team for the 2020 Tokyo Games in Japan at the second and final Olympic Trials hosted by the National Association of Athletics Administration of T&T (NAAATT) on Sunday at the Hasely Crawford Stadium in Mucurapo, Port-of-Spain.
No athlete met the automatic qualifying times in any of the three events - 100 metres, 200m and 400m - at the first Trial on Monday held at the same venue. This afternoon, most of them from the initial invitational meet, who had their season disrupted by the ongoing coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic will return to give it a go.
Abilene Wildcats sprint trio of Jonathan Farinha, his twin brother Nathan and Ayodele Taffe, the top three finishers in the men's 100m dash in the first Trial will again tackle the 10.05-second qualifying standard.
Jonathan crossed first in section two of the timed finals with a wind-assisted 10.39 (1.8), to be the overall winner followed by Nathan in second place with 10.56 while Taffe, winner of section one, was in third place with 10.61 (2.2).
However, today they will all line up in section two against Omari Lewis (10.63), Devin Augustine (10.72) of Point Fortin New Jets (PFNJ), Simplex's Khaliyq Abdullah (10.89), Concorde's Shakeel John (10.93) and PFNJ's Cyrus Charles, second to Taffe in section one with 11.00, who filled the other five spots, overall.
Simplex pair Leah Bertrand and Kamaria Durant and Shaniqua Bascombe of Cougars will renew their rivalry in the women's 100m with greater effort to meet the qualifying time of 11.15.
Bertrand and Kamaria Durant crossed first and second with times of 11.52 and 11.90, respectively while the reigning Youth Sportswoman of the Year—Bascombe was third with 11.97 on their first try.
The Simplex duo will also race in the 200m again, facing down the 22.80-standard after Durant clocked 24.45 to edge out Bertrand (24.51) at the line in the half-lap event. Wildcats’ Khadija Pickering, who had to settle for third place in 25.57, will be back also.
Shakeem McKay, winner of the men's version of the race on Monday in 21.33, will again face the starter. Back to challenge him will be second-placed Stallions Xaverri Williams (22.06) and Mounting Eagles Elijah Joseph (22.11) with all aiming at the 20.24 Olympic standard.
In the 400m event, men’s winner Kirdell Mc Intosh (Unattached) with a 49.12-clocking will again challenge the 44.90-standard and also the women's first-place finisher Caliyah Wallace of Cougars (59.95), trying to meet the 51.35-standard.
The national track and field team will be named this week for the Tokyo Olympics, which will run from July 23 to August 8.