Jamaican-born track & field legend, Merlene Ottey, who became a naturalised citizen of Slovenia in 2002, will make history on July 31 at the European championships, when she competes at the age of 50. Ottey, who has been selected in Slovenia’s 4x100m relay squad for the event (after finishing second in the Slovenian championships), will become the oldest athlete to ever compete at a European Championships. The current record is held by France’s Nicole Brakebusch-Leveque, who was 47 years old when she contested the marathon in the 1998 European Championships
Ottey, won nine Olympic medals while competing for Jamaica at seven Olympic Games. She was 48 years old when she missed out on qualifying for the 2008 Beijing Olympics after failing by 0.28 seconds to attain the qualifying mark in the 100M event. She won her first senior world medal, a bronze, at the Moscow Olympics in 1980 (30 years ago), and has won 29 medals at major competitions, including 14 at the World Championships (more than any other athlete).
Notably also, at the 2000 Sydney Olympics, she became the oldest-ever athletics medallist when she anchored the Jamaican women’s 4x100m relay team to second place.
25 year old German-born Dustin Brown, whose mother is German and father is Jamaican, yesterday became the first Jamaican entry at Wimbledon since 1970, but lost his first round match 6-3, 4-6, 6-2, 6-3 to 16th ranked Jurgen Melzer of Austria.
Brown, who sports dreadlocks, bright yellow wristbands and an unorthodox forehand slice, has been at odds with Jamaica’s tennis federation (Tennis Jamaica) for several years now, and feels neglected in his country. In a recent interview, he said that he deserved a glimmer of the domestic fame enjoyed by compatriot Usain Bolt, and that Bolt probably has no idea that he (Brown) exists.
Interestingly, Brown who is now ranked 105th in the world, is reportedly considering switching nationalities to become a Davis Cup player for England. He may be able to do this, thanks to a British grandmother on his father’s side. Tennis Jamaica meanwhile, doesn’t seem to mind this, and has given the scenario their blessing.
The 48th Annual Montego Bay Yacht Club Marlin Tournament was launched yesterday, and so far, twenty contestants are slated to take part in the canoe segment which starts tomorrow morning at 6 a.m. and ends with a weighing session at 4 p.m.
On Thursday (September 17), the main feature of the tournament will kick off, with at least 15 teams in large boats and mega yachts seeking to snag a prize marlin catch over a three-day period. The event will end on Sunday with a kiddies tournament between the hours of 2 p.m. and 4 p.m.
The Montego Bay Yacht Club’s annual marlin tournament is one of only two such fishing tournaments that are still held in Jamaica. The other is the Port Antonio fishing tournament which is slated to get underway next week.
Following reports yesterday that the Jamaica Amateur Athletic Association (JAAA) and sent a request to the International Amateur Athletics Federation (IAAF) requesting that six of the island’s top athletes be removed from its team as a result of a dispute over training camp attendance, the JAAA has now reportedly withdrawn this request.
The IAAF secretary general, Pierre Weiss, reportedly said that the IAAF put pressure on the JAAA to withdraw the request because the exclusion of these six prominent athletes would undoubtedly reflect badly on the World Championships itself.
It is likely however, that the six athletes will face sanctions / disciplinary action by the Jamaica Amateur Athletics Association (JAAA) following the 12th biennial IAAF World Athletics Championships.
Unconfirmed reports are that five Jamaican athletes – four men and one woman – tested positive for banned substances at last month’s national senior championships which were held in Kingston. The five, who are still to be named, reportedly includes two males and a female who are members of Jamaica’s sprint (4x100m) relay pools, having finished in the top six of the 100 metres race at the national senior championships.
Notably, according to unconfirmed sources, none of Jamaica’s premier sprinters are among the five, but all are(were) included in Jamaica’s 46-member team to next month’s 12th IAAF World Championships in Berlin. The five will reportedly be notified of the positive tests today, and it is expected that they will be removed from the team to the IAAF World Championships and that bans or other penalties will be imposed.
Olympic triple gold medalist was reportedly injured (not seriously) in a car accident on the Highway 2000 road here in St. Catherine, Jamaica this afternoon.
He was reportedly traveling with his girlfriend, and both have been taken to hospital. His motor vehicle somehow ended up in a ditch along the highway, but it’s not clear yet how exactly the accident happened.
Grandstand tickets for Saturday, the final of the four-day GraceKennedy/ISSA Boys and Girls’ Athletic Championships, were reportedly being sold by scalpers for almost twice their face value. Grandstand tickets were sold by the organizers for J$1600 and are now reportedly sold out, but just a few steps from the entrance some nifty scalpers are now reselling them at $3000 each.
This is a Jamaica News update.
Boys and Girls’ Athletic Championships 2009 got underway yesterday at the National Stidum. Outside of bringing tremendous excitement to a full stadium of Jamaicans once a year, Boys & Girls Champs undoubtedly provides unforgettable moments and more. Champs continues today (Thursday) through to Saturday from 8:15 a.m. until 7:40 p.m. each night.
This is a Jamaica News update.
