By BVIAA

Tarika “Tinker Bell” Moses made her long awaited 800m debut in grand style on Friday at the David Hemery Valentine Invitational in Boston, Mass., and established a British Virgin Islands National Indoor Record in the process.

The 2013 Carifta Games U17 Girls 400m silver medalist who was sidelined by injury last year, became the third best performer all time but the fastest debutant when she stopped the clock at 2 minutes 12.46 competing against collegians. She became the first athlete to book her ticket to St. Kitts for the 44th Carifta Games over the Easter Weekend.

At the same competition, after running the sixth fastest time of 7.61 seconds in the 60m dash, Karene King ran a season’s best of 24.04 seconds to win her 200m heat and was fifth overall. Her time eclipsed Ashley Kelly’s 24.12 as the fastest so far this season.

Bethune-Cookman Sr. Keron Stoute was fourth in the MEAC Conference Indoor Championships Heptathlon with a score of 4502 points. He helped his team to a 1.5 points victory over North Carolina A&T, 126.50-125.

Competing at the Don Kirby Elite and Open, Albuquerque, New Mexico, Central Arizona Freshman Trevia Gumbs, improved her Shot Put best to 14.47 (47’5¾”) the ninth best throw of the meet, then recorded another personal best in the Weight Throw with a 15.39m measurement to place 23rd overall. Her twin sister Tynelle finished 9th following her 17.28m effort but didn’t have a legal throw in the Shot Put.

Eldred Henry encountered foul trouble in the Shot Put and did not record a legal throw.

At the Melrose Games in New York, Ashley Kelly was fourth in the 400m in 54.36 seconds.

Taylor Hill ran her second successive 200m under 25.00 seconds to place fourth in the Tyson Invitational Olympic Development event in 24.74 seconds in Fayetteville, Ark.

Cary High School Sr. Lakeisha “Mimi” Warner, was third in the North Carolina State High School 4A Championships 500m with a personal best of 1 minute, 16.49 seconds. She contributed third leg carries on both the 4x200m and 4x400m Relays respectively. The 4×200 quartet was second in 1:42.07 and the 4×400 was also second in 3:55.76.

Chantel Malone kicked off her European tour at the ISTAF Berlin Indoor in Germany, with a leap of 6.39m in the Long Jump, to place seventh overall.

BVIAA Development Series
L’Tisha “Lea” Fahie qualified for the July 9-15 IAAF World Youth Championships in Cali, Colombia, with a third placed finish in the 200m during Friday’s BVI Athletics Association 5th Development Series meet.

Running into a -3.1 meters per second headwind, Fahie finished behind Nelda Huggins’ winning time of 24.91 seconds and Beyonce DeFreitas’ 25.18, when she turned in a time of 25.24.

DJimon Gumbs had a personal best throw of 45.42m in the U18 Boys Discus Throw among the meet’s highlights.

By BVIAA

Tortola’s Julius Farley and Rosmond Johnson won Saturday’s second leg of the Dive BVI 5K Series on Virgin Gorda, a race that attracted 55 participants.

Farley, who finished behind Virgin Gorda’s Curvin Andrews in last year’s running for Male Road Racer of the Year, had a winning time of 19 minutes and 47 seconds ahead of Andrews’ 19:52. First race winner Emrol Amsterdam was third in 20:16.

Johnson took the women’s division in 22:44, with Tortola counterpart NiMade Oniashi second in 23:59. Rhiannon Jones ran 26:42 to finish third.

“It was an amazing run as Tortola came to Virgin Gorda and dominated,” event coordinator Casey McNutt pointed it. “It was awesome and on March 7 we’ll do it again to see who comes out on top.”

Although there was no race registration fee, $200 was raised for charity as participants contributed to the Virgin Gorda Elderly home.

“It’s good to give them a little cash from people who donated from our community,” McNutt stated. “In our first race we contributed $150 in donations to the Virgin Gorda Animal Rescue and Kontrol (ARK). On March 7, the young kids at St. Mary’s School for the citizenship part of their course, they are going to run the race for us. Under our supervision, they will be taking registration, helping with timing, pinning numbers on runners and working at the water stations and at the end, we’ll have a big beach breakfast.”

The Blenheim Trust 5K Series kicks off on Tortola on Feb 21. That 7 a.m. race will start and end at the A. O. Shirley Recreation Grounds.

Final Results.

Men: 1. Julius Farley, 19 minutes and 47 seconds. 2. Curwin Andrews, 19:52, 3. Emrol Amsterdam, 20:16. 4. Zeblon McLean, 20:33. 5. Ravindra Sukhu, 20:45. 6. Ezron. Simmons, 21:00. 7. Marco Brava, 21:14. 8. Marlon Felix, 22:30. 9. Charles Kerins, 22:53. 10. Rainford Legair, 23:16. 11. Kevin Jackson, 23:26. 12. Shane Donovan, 23:29. 13. Jermaine Abrams, 24:22. 14. Luka Chalwell, 25:14. 15. Jonathan McCarthy, 26:02. 16. Keith Williams, 26:15. 17. Wilbert Samuel, 29:59. 18. Stephen Beard, 30:49. 19. Scott Butz, 32:06. 20. Zoltan Birinyi, 37:01. 21. Mark Moore, 49:43. 22. Nicholas Moore, 49:43. 23. Benjamin Moore 53:16.

Women: 1. Rosmond Johnson, 22:44. 2. Oniasih Ni Made, 23:59. 3. Rhiannon Jones, 26:42, 4. Zoe Bickerton, 27:37. 5. Jenni Dobbie, 28:43. 6. Jo South, 28:50. 7. Lisa-Ann Redfern, 30:17. 8. Chislaine Hoogendyk, 30:27. 9. AJ Syrett, 30:49. 10. Becca Knight, 31:11. 11. Roslyn Gilbert, 31:41. 12. Tara Murphy, 31:49. 13. Clare Burke, 31:58. 14. Charlie Brigden, 35:24. 15. Chris Yates, 38:52. 16. Hyacinth Telemaque, 46:52. 17. Michela Paradisi, 47:09. 18. Beth Besom, 48:00. 19. Betty Biancardi, 48:00. 20. Lynne Hawkins, 48:03. 21. Linda Ryan, 50:03. 22. Erika Radack, 50:05. 23. Liz Tapley, 50:05. 24. Sarah Moore, 53:16. 25. Jolyn Jno Baptiste, 53:44. 26. Jackisha R, 53:47. 27. Debbie Bruce, 53:56. 28. Kenesha Bascombe, 55:09. 29. Jamila Courtney, 55:12. 30. Taureen Walters, 55:14. 31. Kiara Thomas, 55:14. 32. Tanieka Gludd, 55:14. 33. Cathyann Bascombe, 55:14. Kim Berarine DNF injury

By BVIAA

South paw Kevin Vanterpool and Heptathlete Arianna Hayde, fired the Javelin to huge personal bests, climbing to #3 and #2 respectively on the territory’s All Time Men and Women’s Lists, during Friday evening’s fourth BVI Athletics Association Development Series meet, held at the A. O. Shirley Recreation Grounds.

Vanterpool, who cracked the 50m barrier for the first time in his career with a heave of 50.15m on his second attempt following a 49.28 opener, rifled the spear out to 52.94m (178’8 ¾”) in round four. He’s the second Jr. to ever penetrate the 50m barrier and third overall with the 800g implement.

Then, soon to be 15 year old Hayde—the 2014 Youth Female Athlete of the Year presented by Sol—uncorked a throw of 34.05m with the 600g rod, to fly into the second spot on the All Time List—just the third athlete to ever heave the spear past the 30m barrier.

On the track, Kyron McMaster who moved to the U20 Boys class this year, opened with his fastest 400m ever, when he stopped the clock at 48.75 seconds. McMaster was a 2014 Carifta Games U18 Boys 400m Hurdles bronze medalist and qualified for both the IAAF World Jr. Championships and Youth Olympic Games. He was the 2014 Jr. Male Athlete of the Year. He pulled his Fast Lane Track Club teammate Ronique Todman to a 50.13 personal best.

In her first race since placing sixth in last year’s Youth Olympic Games, Nelda Huggins—the 2014 Jr. Female Athlete of the Year—opened her 2015 campaign with a time of 12.09 seconds in the 100m. Huggins who has won a Carifta Games 100m medal every year since 2011 and last year broke a tie with Keita Cline and Chantel Malone to become the territory’s most prolific Carifta Games medalist with seven, moves to the U20 division this season.

Judine Lacey won a spirited U18 Girls 400m battle, passing a fading Zacharia Frett three meters before the line to win in 58.85 seconds. Frett was second in 59.00 while short sprinter L’Tisha Fahie—working on her speed endurance—finished third in 59.27.

National Records fall in Arizona

Competing at the Pima Aztec Indoor Invitational in Arizona, Tynelle Gumbs and Eldred Henry improved on their two weeks old Weight Throw National Records. Gumbs extended her mark of 17.55m with a heave of 18.14 on her final attempt. Her series included measurements of 17.54, 17.53 and 17.62 amid two fouls.

Her twin sister Trevia was fourth after a third round effort of 14.50m. Trevia won the Shot Put with a third round throw of 13.79m with Tynelle placing second in 11.80.

Henry had only one legal throw on his second attempt two win the Shot Put competition with a mark of 17.89m, then improved his Weight Throw best from 16.32m with a winning twirl of 16.38.

At the Eastern Tennessee State University Buccaneers Invitational, St. Augustine University sophomore Khari Herbert finished third in the 400m in 48.88 seconds, after running 49.53 in his prelims to advance. He contributed a second leg carry on his team’s 4x400m relay that finished second in 3:13.28.

In College Station, Tex., after shaving 0.02 off her 60m best from last week with a fifth placed time of 7.54 seconds in the 60m dash, Taylor Hill chopped her 200m indoor personal best from 25.22 seconds to 24.70 to finish second in her heat and sixth overall. She joined Ashley Kelly, 24.12 and Karene King, 24.42 as the third BVI athletes under 25.00 indoors this season.

Competing in the New Balance Boston Grand Prix, Kelly was fourth in the 300m recording a time of 38.24 seconds.

Veteran Tahesia Harrigan-Scott—in the penultimate stop of her European tour in Mondeville, France—was fifth in the 60m finals in 7.34 seconds, after running 7.38 in the semis.

Cary High School Sr. Lakeisha “Mimi” Warner ran 58.91 seconds and finished sixth in the 400m at the David Oliver Indoor Classic in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. She used a second leg carry and helped her 4x 200m relay squad to a second place finish in 1:41.63

Sr. Jonel Lacey, competing for Holmwood High School at the Youngster Goldsmith Classic in Jamaica, made her 400m Intermediate Hurdles debut with a time of one minute 02.61 seconds—the #2 mark on the All Time List—to place third. She was fifth in her 400m heat in 57.52.

By  BVIAA

Competing against two 2014 IAAF World Indoor Championships 60m finalist in what turned out to be the fastest race in the world so far this season, sprinter Taylor Hill—two days shy of her 19th birthday—used a personal best to become the fourth British Virgin Islands female athlete to run under 7.60 seconds this season.

Hill, running in Houston, Tex. in the Howie Ryan Invitational and Multis, was sixth in the 60m final in 7.56 seconds, 0.01 behind Ashley Kelly’s 7.55 from two weeks ago for the third fastest time by a BVI athlete over 60m this season. Karene King also ran 7.59. Hill advanced to the final after running 7.64.

Ivory Coast’s Murielle Ahoure, a 2014 IAAF World Indoor Championships 60m silver medalist and a 2013 IAAF World Outdoor Championships double silver medalist in the 100 and 200m, won the race in a world leading 7.08 seconds. Ahoure was followed by Trinidad and Tobago’s Michelle Lee Ahye—also a 2014 World Indoor finalist—in 7.16.

Hill followed up with another personal best in the 200m when she stopped the clock at 25.21 seconds, lowering her indoor best from 25.89.

The weekend began with veteran Tahesia Harrigan-Scott kicking off her European tour with two stops in Germany. She began the tour with a sixth placed time of 7.30 seconds in the 60m final in Dusseldorf, after a 7.35 semi. On Saturday in Karlsruhe, she said she was ‘caught sleeping in the blocks’ when she ran 7.34 seconds in the prelims followed by 7.35 in the final to finish seventh. Her tour continues with one meet in Poland and two in France.

St. Augustine University sophomore Khari Herbert, won his 400m heat in the Hilton Garden Invitational in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, and was second overall with a time of 49.25 seconds on Friday. He placed third in his 200m heat in 22.77, good for eight overall on Saturday morning.Herbert contributed a second leg carry to his team’s 4x400m Relay that placed third in 3:15.82.

Also in North Carolina, Cary High School Sr. Lakeisha “Mimi” Warner qualified for the State 4A Indoor Championships after placing fourth in her 500m heat and fifth overall in 1:20.46.

In Jamaica, returning to the form she displayed as a 16 year old, Jonel Lacey was third in the 400m in 57.6 seconds then followed up with a 56.3 seconds carry on the 4x400m Relay.