Sports

Nickisha Pryce, Sean Bailey win national 400m titles

Loop News

July 9, 2023 11:00 PM ET

2 mins read

Nickisha Pryce from the University of Arkansas achieved a new personal best time of 50.21 to secure victory in the women’s 400m at the National Senior and Junior Championships at the National Stadium on Sunday.

The former Vere Technical High athlete looked very relaxed as she controlled the race from start to finish to win her first national title.

Taking the second and third positions were Janieve Russell, the 400m hurdles champion, with a personal best time of 50.76, and Candice McLeod, who clocked 51.07.

Sean Bailey dominated the men’s 400m final, surpassing Antonio Watson from Racers Track Club to recapture his national title with a new personal best of 44.48 seconds.

Watson secured second place, improving his personal best for the second time in a month with a time of 44.54. Jevaughn Powell, the reigning champion from 2022, finished in third position with a time of 45.19.

Powell, however, has yet to meet the qualifying mark of 45.00 seconds for next month’s World Athletics Championships in Budapest, Hungary. Consequently, Zadrion Barnes of G.C. Foster College, who finished sixth with a time of 46.10, could potentially join Bailey and Watson in Budapest.

Barnes already achieved the World Championships qualifying standard on June 3 at the National Stadium, enhancing his chances of participating in the upcoming event.

The top three athletes in each event will qualify for the World Athletics Championships, provided they have met the required world standard of 20.16 seconds. 

In addition to determining the team for the World Athletics Championships, the Jamaica trials will also select the squads for three junior competitions. These competitions include the NACAC Under-18 and Under-23 Championships in San Jose, Costa Rica (July 21-23), the Pan American Under-20 Athletics Championships in Puerto Rico (August 4-6), and the Under-18 Commonwealth Youth Games in Port of Spain, Trinidad (August 6-9).