New Champs 100m record holder Alana Reid has noted that the absence of arch-rival Serena Cole in the blue ribbon event on Wednesday night did not allow her to drop her guard.
Reid, the daughter of former Reggae Boy Garfield Reid, threw down the gauntlet in her semi-final when she stopped the clock at 11.16 seconds, only for Cole, the Edwin Allen High School star who appeared destined to finally emerge from the shadows of the Clayton twins, shut off her semis in 11.17 seconds, and setting the stage for a real humdinger of a final.
However, Cole was seen grimacing immediately after crossing the finish line in her semis, and news soon emerged that she had suffered a hamstring injury and would not face the starter for the final.
Reid put all the noise aside and breezed to a spectacular 10.92 seconds (1.0mps), the first sub 11-second execution of a 100m final at the ISSA/GraceKennedy Boys’ and Girls’ Athletics Championships.
The run also shattered the Champs record of 11.13 seconds set in 2001 by the legendary Veronica Campbell Brown, and it also bettered the National Junior Record of 10.95 seconds set by Tina Clayton last August at the World Under-20 Championships in Cali, Colombia.
In response to the absence of Cole, Reid was candid.
“Well no because I always look out for myself and having the support from my coach Corey Bennett and my teammates, my mom and my dad, they give me the drive and the push to go out there.”
She added: “I know that anything I put my mind to I can achieve.”
Taking her remarkable victory in stride, Reid explained further that she would be trying to recover from the rigors of the short sprint in preparation for the 200m which started on Thursday.
“Well I just have to go back to the drawing board to get some rest to come back and I need it in the 200 as well, so I just have to believe in myself and I have a wide support team and they are always there for me, so it’s just for me to go back and rest and come back stronger.
“To be honest I always say a word of prayer, whether at the starting line or before I am about to run. I just always tell myself that the sky is the limit and anything I believe I can achieve and as I said previously, my coach has been there for me even at times when I felt like giving up, so I just have to thank him for that and thank my teammates and family.”
It was therefore no surprise when Reid ran straight to the grandstand after her victory on Wednesday night to find her mother Karen Chisholm and celebrate with a passionate hug.
