Ashley Kelly wins Gold at Aliann Pompey Invitational ahead of IAAF World Athletics Championships

July 18, 2017 by

Source: VINO

Ashley N. Kelly sprinted to gold in the 400m Finals at the Aliann Pompey Invitational Track and Field Meet in Guyana on July 15, 2017. Photo: Lonny

Competing at the 2nd annual Aliann Pompey Invitational Track and Field Meet in Guyana as a tune up for the IAAF World Athletics Championships in London next month, the Virgin Islands’ Ashley N. Kelly sprinted to gold in the 400m Finals on July 15, 2017.

Kelly, making her second appearance at the event in Guyana, completed the quarter mile run in 52.17, ahead of Jamaicans Rushell Clayton (52.80) and Dominique Blake (52.96).

Rio Olympian Kelly booked her place at the IAAF World Athletics Championships when she blazed to a new National Record in the 400m at the Tru Fit Miami Invitational on July 8, 2017.

The qualifying time for London is 52.10 and Kelly ran 51.63 to also break her own National Record of 52.29, which she set at the 2016 OECS Track and Field Championships in the Virgin Islands.

Meanwhile, the US Virgin Islands (USVI) Malique Smith led from start to finish to capture gold in the Men’s 800m.

Smith clocked 1:51.90 to hold off the late challenge of Guyanese Samuel Lynch (1:53.25) and Quincy Morian (1:54.79).

The USVI’s Mikaela Smith (2:37.24) took bronze in the Women’s 800m.

The Aliann Pompey Invitational is the premier international track and field competition in Guyana, South America. In its first year, the competition hosted 11 athletes who went on to compete at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio.

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After Rare Feat, Harrigan-Scott Focusing on Pan Am Games 100m

July 21, 2015 by

By BVIAA

Tahesia Harrigan-Scott in action during the 2013 IAAF World Championships in Moscow, Russia Photo: Dean “The Sportsman” Greenaway

Tahesia Harrigan-Scott in action during the 2013 IAAF World Championships in Moscow, Russia Photo: Dean “The Sportsman” Greenaway

Every athlete has a goal of competing in the International Association of Athletics Federations World Championships. Some never get the chance, others once even twice.

For Tahesia Hariggan-Scott it’s totally different. She’s coming off winning the US Track and Field Club Championships in New York on July 11. More so, her winning 100m time of 11.14 seconds with a legal wind limit of 2.0 meters per second, qualified her for a fifth successive IAAF World Championships.

This year however, was the latest in her career, that she has met the standard dating back to 2005.

“I’m very relieved that I’ve qualified for worlds,” she said. “It was tough. But now, it’s one less stress to think about and to go out and qualify with the time I did, I’m very relieved. But, to be really honest, I was feeling okay at the beginning of this season, though I had some downfalls with injuries or slight issues with recurring injuries, so that kind of set me back a little bit,” reflected the BVI sprinter from a country of less than 30,000 inhabitants.

She said the road was a little tougher, because in practices she felt like she ran okay, but when she went to a meet, she ran terrible times. “That was playing on my mind a little bit,” she noted. “I knew it was always there and it was just making some corrections. Once they fell into place, I knew there’d be a big drop in my time. It was being patient and trusting in the process.”

With a season’s best of 11.40 before the 11.14, which is .01 off her best and which she hadn’t been close to since 2011, Harrigan-Scott said it’s a confidence boost heading into Pan Ams and feels that her body is finally in synch with her mind and everything seems easier. If she’s not doing something right, her body tells her she said. “It is a confidence booster and I’ll try to come out and win a medal,” she said. “That’s the goal and to continue to drop my times and execute the race that I know I’m capable of doing.”

Since injuring her quads two years ago, Harrigan-Scott said she has developed some bad habits that she and her husband-coach have been trying to correct, including kicking back, which is less than what it was before. She said she taught her body how to run without the pain but in the process it caused poor race execution and resulted in slower times.

“Everything seem to be coming into place at the right time,” she said. “Yes, it would have been good to qualify for worlds earlier in the season, but it’s falling into place at the right time and it’s a blessing in disguise.”

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V.I. Athletes to Compete in World Youth, CAC Age Group Championships

July 14, 2015 by

By  BVIAA

US Virgin Islands Nia Jack, left and the BVI's L'T'Sha Fahie will see 100m action in the IAAF World Youth Championships on Thursday. They have bests of 11.86 and 11.85 seconds respectively. Photo: Dean "The Sportsman" Greenaway

US Virgin Islands Nia Jack, left and the BVI’s L’T’Sha Fahie will see 100m action in the IAAF World Youth Championships on Thursday. They have bests of 11.86 and 11.85 seconds respectively. Photo: Dean “The Sportsman” Greenaway

Two groups of U.S. and British Virgin Islands Under 18 athletes are slated to compete in Cali, Colombia and Port of Spain Trinidad, this week.

Settling into Colombia today after arriving last night, the U.S. Virgin Islands’ Nia Jack and Rodney Griffin along with the BVI’s L’T’Sha Fahie, all of whom competed in the Carifta Games in St. Kitts earlier this year, will begin competing in the IAAF World Youth Championships in Cali, Colombia, in the U18 global championships that runs from Wednesday through Sunday.

Both Jack and Griffin are coming off running winning medals in the Pan American Youth Championships last month, which were also held in Cali, as a final test run for the World Youth Championships, which targets 16-17 aged athletes.

Griffin, who will be the first to see action in the 400m prelims on Wednesday, enters the competition with a 49.13 seconds career best. Jack, coming off a personal best of 11.86 seconds to win the Pan Am Youth Championship gold medal, will run in the 100m preliminaries on Thursday.

Fahie, who was fifth in the Carifta Games 100m, established a personal best of 11.85 seconds and along with Jack are the fastest U18 Girls this season in the greater Virgin Islands. Fahie ran a 200m lifetime best of 24.80 seconds and will also see action on Friday in the prelims.

CAC Age Group Championships
Later in the week, USVI and BVI athletes will depart on Friday for Trinidad to compete in the CAC Age Group Championships on Saturday and Sunday. The BVI hosted the 2011 edition.

The multi-event discipline caters to 11-12 and 13-14 athletes who will compete in five and seven events respectively, with points awarded for each performance towards a cumulative score.

The championships cater to eight athletes, two male and two females in each of the age groups. During the championships, athletes compete for individual awards as well as male and female age division and overall team awards.

The 11-12 Boys and Girls will contest the 60m dash, Long Jump, High Jump, Baseball Throw and 800m for girls and the boys will run 1000m. The 13-14 division athletes will run the 80m dash, 60m Hurdles, Long Jump, High Jump, Baseball Throw, Shot Put and the 1000m for girls while the boys will tackle the 1200m.

The USVI athletes are: 11-12 Girls: T’Yannah Lake and T’Anna Lake: 11-12 Boy: Makari Looby: 13-14 Girls: Mikeala Smith and Jusenia Tuitt. 13-14 Boy: Valence Modeste. Officials: Keith Smith, Kim Stanley, Chearoll and Yukia James.

Six athletes will represent the BVI in the competition. 11-12 Girls: Alyah Smith and Alisha Hayde. Boys: Malachi Smith and Sha’el Lavacia. 13-14 Girls: Xiorara Malone and Tashara Edwards. Officials: Ralston Henry, Burt Dorsett and Ericca Frederick.

Harrigan-Scott World Championships bound
Veteran sprinter Tahesia Harrigan-Scott booked her fifth straight ticket to the IAAF World Championships on Saturday, after winning the USA Track and Field Club Championships in Icahn, NY. Harrigan-Scott won the 100m in 11.14 seconds, just .01 off her career best and will compete in Beijing, China, Aug 22-30. She also won her semi in 11.45. Her next competition will be in the Pan Am Games in Toronto. Ashley Kelly finished fourth in the 200m in 23.86 seconds after running 11.72 in the 100m finals. She ran 11.83 in the heats.

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Harrigan-Scott, King Wins Jimmy Carnes Indoor Invitational 55 & 200m

January 21, 2014 by

By: Dean Greenaway

karene_&_harrigan_indoorTahesia Harrigan-Scott and Karene King won the 55m and 200m respectively in the 2014 Jimmy Carnes Indoor Invitational in Gainesville, Florida on Friday, to kick off their respective annual under cover campaigns. Meanwhile, Ashley Kelly won a sprint double in New York.

The competition also saw Taylor Hill making her 55m debut and Bethune-Cookman Sr. Keron Stoute competing in the High Jump.

Tru Fit Athletics’ Harrigan-Scott won the 55m in 6.76 seconds after advancing from the semis with 6.78. Sprint Tech Track Club’s Karene was sixth in 7.01, after a 6.96 semi. Hill, in her debut appeared in the same heat with Harrigan-Scott and was fourth in her semi in 7.21. Hill ran 25.87 in her 200m heat.

King had the fastest indoor 200m opener of her career, with a 24.46 winner.

Meanwhile, Bethune-Cookman Sr. Keron Stoute was second in the High Jump with a leap of 2.05m (6’8¾”).

Kelly’s NYU Shootout Double

Ashley Kelly grabbed a double at the NYU Saturday Night Shoot Out. Kelly ran a personal best of 7.51 seconds to win the 60m and took the 200m in 24.88.

Elsewhere, Alex Shchegol freshman Khari Herbert Jr. strained his hamstring competing in the Albany Grate Danes Classic in New York. Hebert Jr. was at the time competing in the 200m. He’s expected to miss about three weeks of action.

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BVIAA marks 43rd anniversary with annual general meeting

September 23, 2013 by
2012-'16 BVIAA Executive Committee

2012-2016 BVI Athletics Association Executive Committee

The BVI Athletics Association—founded on Sept 19, 1970—marked its 43rd anniversary with an Annual General Meeting held at the Elmore Stoutt High School. The meeting attracted members, coaches, athletes and parents.

Towards the end of the life of the 2008-2012 Executive Committee, a decision was taken to adjust the association’s calendar year from January 1-December 31, to September 1-August 31, to give the new Executive Committee adequate time to plan for the 2013 season. As a result, elections were moved from December 5, 2012 to October 15. Thus, the current Executive Committee has been in place and done a magnificent job over the last year.
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