If the recent performances by Caribbean athletes are anything to go by,spectators at the inaugural Caribbean Games scheduled for July 12-19 in T&T
are in for some world-class athletics.
Several Caribbean track athletes carded to compete in CG09 claimed podium honours and broke national records at the 25th edition of the prestigious Grande Prêmio Brasil Caixa – an athletic meet in Brazil which serves as a qualifier for the IAAF World Athletics Final set for Thessaloniki, Greece in September.
Laverne Jones of the US Virgin Islands was the top female performer after completing the sprint double in career best times. Jones clocked 11.18secs to win the 100m, ahead of Jamaican Sheri-Ann Brooks (11.33) and Aleen Bailey (11.33) in fourth and fifth positions.
Soon after, Laverne posted a world-leading 22.49secs to win the 200m.
Kelly-Ann Baptiste of Trinidad & Tobago with a new national record of 22.60 and Cydonie Mothershill of The Cayman Islands completed the podium finishes, while Brooks placed fifth with 23.04secs.
The Ladies did not stop there as Josanne Lucas came 2nd in 400m Hurdles and broke her own national record from 55.29 to 55.24.
Meanwhile, Emmanuel Callendar was the best placed Trinidadian in the men’s 100m with 10.25 secs, placing third overall behind Michael Rodgers of the United States (9.9secs.) and José Carlos Moreira of Brazil (10.1secs).
The men’s 200m, divided into two races, also provided excellent results for Caribbean athletes.
The “A” race was taken by Jamaican Marvin Anderson with 20.15 (wind nil), a performance that will put him in the second place of the 2009 World lists. Rodgers, with a PB (Personal Best) of 20.24, and Brendan Christian (Antigua & Barbuda) with a SB (Season Best) of 20.26, completed winners’ row. The “B” 
