There were no attending spectators due to the pandemic, but the 110th staging of the Inter-secondary Schools Sports Association (ISSA)/GraceKennedy Boys’ and Girls’ Championships, “Champs”, held inside the National Stadium last week was a massive success in more ways than one.
No commendation can be too high for the sponsors, the organizers, the officials, the volunteers, the government agencies, the support staff, the schools, the coaches and athletes.
At the end of the day, Jamaica College dethroned Kingston College in the boys’ category, while Edwin Allen High School retained the girls’ crown for the sixth consecutive outing.
Special commendation goes to Neil Harrison, the Jamaica College head coach, who went mighty close with Kingston College a few years ago after making a name for himself at Munro College. It was also a special triumph for Harrison, who was head coach at Clarendon College many years ago when they won the DaCosta Cup football title. Well done, sir.
All athletes must be lauded for putting themselves at risk to put on a show for a television audience at home and in the diaspora in these uncertain times.
But while the event was considered a success, by and large, some things can be instituted to make it better in the future.
The scheduling was one of the main successes at the meet, according to some analysts. The organizers had multiple finals from day one of the five-day meet, which made it more athlete-friendly. The hope is for this blueprint to be maintained going forward, with the requisite tweaking to make it even more athlete-friendly.
One criticism was that the 200m, 400m and 800m finals were too close and would have negatively impacted those athletes doubling up. Still, there is room for improvement in all areas, as purportedly outlined by Paul Francis, a highly qualified track-and-field official.
According to a social media statement, Francis is alleged to have listed a few negatives coming out of the meet. “I have thought about this long and hard and am aware that my statement may compromise my invitation to be an official next year.
“1) Incorrect wind readings posted for the 200m heats. At the National Stadium venue, it is impossible to have plus 4 winds in the long jump, while having plus winds in the 200m heats which are being run at the same time. The athletes go in opposite directions.
“2) Athletes are lined up for a sprint hurdle final and after the race is done, they are being asked to re-run the race because of a ‘misfire’. This is a term I am not familiar with in track and field jargon. However, the athletes return, and they run a final with one flight of hurdles missing. So the 80m hurdle event is run over seven flights. What if there was a record performance?
“3) Medley relay heats are being run and athletes are placed at the 400m stagger for a race that is to be run in lanes for three turns. To quantify, it means that the athletes (team) in lane eight will run approximately 70m more than the team in lane one.
“4) We have a field final (long jump Class Three boys) and one athlete is allowed seven jumps.
“My message is not meant to criticize or step on toes, but to highlight the absolute need for all officials to be mandated to do a refresher course, maybe every two years, just to keep skills sharp and knowledge current in the sport we all dearly love and want to continue to serve in.
“In conclusion, yes, there were good, and even great officiating moments. Communication was on point. There was generally a lot of attention to detail…however, at the end of the day, the onlookers tend to only remember and speak about the negatives.”
Like Mr. Francis has said, these comments are meant to aid the improvement of the product and not just to criticize the powers that be.
They should be accepted as such.
