Day four of the World Champs was a shorter day than the previous ones. Action for Jamaicans began in the afternoon session with the Heats of the Men’s 200m which saw only two Jamaicans qualifying for the Semifinals. Rasheed Dwyer equaled his Season’s Best of 20.29s to place second in his Heat while Yohan Blake placed fourth in his Heat with 20.35s to qualify based on time. Akeem Bloomfield finished fifth in his Heat with 20.56s and did not advance to the Semifinals.
Samantha Hall contested the Women’s Discus, being drawn in Qualifying Group B, but her throw of 56.99m was not enough to see her through to the final.
The Women’s 200m saw all three of our Jamaican ladies advancing to the Semifinals. Shericka Jackson won her Heat in 22.33s, Elaine Thompson-Herah ran 22.41s to finish second in her Heat and Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce with 22.26s placed second in her Heat. All ladies look comfortable and should be eager to contest the Semifinals.
The biggest highlight of the day came when all three Jamaicans Shanieka Ricketts, Kimberly Williams and Ackelia Smith all competed in the Women’s Triple Jump Final. Smith began the event with a 13.90m, having failed to better that first attempt, the 20 y-o finished twelfth overall. Williams consistently got over the 14 metre mark, jumping 14.29m three times. It was good enough to earn a second round of jumps but only good enough for seventh. Ricketts on the other hand began the competition with a Season’s Best, and briefly World Leading, 14.89m. While her card looked good overall, it was her first jump of the competition that bagged her the silver medal – Jamaica’s fourth of the Championship. The competition was quite entertaining for fans as World Record holder Venezuela’s Yulimar Rojas leaped four times over 14m with her two best jumps being 15.47m to earn a third consecutive World Title.
The day ended with the medal ceremony of the women’s 100m. The crowd and medalists were abuzz as Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, Shericka Jackson and Elaine Thompson-Herah all collected their silverware to consummate making history. Their times of 10.67s, 10.73s and 10.81s are the fastest times in World Championship history based on places.
Day five promises to be another one filled with action for our Jamaican athletes as Janieve Russell, Shiann Salmon and Rushell Clayton are all slated to compete in the Heat two, four and five respectively in the Women’s 400mh. Shericka Jackson, Elaine Thompson-Herah and Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce are set to compete in Semifinal one, two and three respectively of the Women’s 200m. Both Yohan Blake and Rasheed Dwyer will be competing in Semifinal one and three of the Men’s 200m. Jaheel Hyde is set to compete in his first World Championship Final as he will be running out of lane seven in the Men’s 400m Hurdles.
-Kemal Forde