With just one preliminary stage in the Diamond League meets remaining, several of Jamaica’s star athletes have their sights set on the lucrative finals which will be held in Zurich and Brussels on August 30 and 31.
The last meet in the preliminary stage, the Birmingham Diamond League, will be held on Saturday and athletes will be seeking to clinch berths in the grand finals, where the winners of each discipline will walk away with US$50,000.
Five Jamaican men have already booked their tickets for the finals, with one likely to do so in Birmingham. Discus thrower Fedrick Dacres, with 25 points, is the leader in his event ahead of Lithuania’s Andrius Gudzius on 22 points.
Yohan Blake
Yohan Blake looks on course to book a place in the 100m final. Blake, who returned to some form at the London Diamond League after finishing fourth in a season’s best 9.95 seconds, is presently occupying the eighth and final spot on nine points, one ahead of Britain’s Chijindu Ujah on eight and two ahead of another Briton, Zharnel Hughes.
Blake will advance if he finishes ahead of Ujah, while Hughes will have to finish two places ahead of the Jamaican to advance to the finals.
Long jumper Tajay Gayle is lying in eighth position, along with two other athletes in the long jump, on four points. Twelve athletes will advance to the finals.
Women contenders
Among the women, Janieve Russell and Shericka Jackson, along with triple jumper Kimberly Williams, have booked places in the finals. Russell has qualified for the 400 metre hurdles and Jackson in the 200 metres. Sprint hurdler Danielle Williams is in third place in the women’s 100m hurdles on 23 points, while Natoya Goule (17 points) is fifth in the women’s 800m.
Danniel Thomas-Dodd, who is in fifth spot in the shot put on nine points, and Aisha Praught on six points in ninth position in the women’s 3000m steeplechase have all booked their tickets to the finals.
Olympic sprint champion Elaine Thompson had also booked a final spot in the women’s 100 metres, where she was third on 25 points, but will not contest the finals after calling a halt to her season recently.
National 400m champion Stephenie Ann McPherson must wait until Saturday to cement a final spot. With only seven athletes to move into the finals, McPherson is in joint seventh spot with American Courtney Okolo.
McPherson has the psychological advantage here after beating the American easily a week ago at the NACAC Championships, where she won the gold medal.
