USA dominates at Pan-American Junior Championships in São Paulo

In a powerful display, the US team dominated the fourteenth edition of the Pan-American Junior Championships, which took place in São Paulo from 6-8 July. The US team won 48 medals (24 gold) to 13 of Canada (4 gold) and 11 of Brazil (3 gold).

A total of 8 Championship records were improved at the track of the “Estádio Ícaro de Castro Melo”: two in the men’s division and six in the women’s programme.

Brilliant 400m races

Despite not breaking the 45.14 championship record set by his compatriot Obea Moore in Santiago de Chile ’95, Bryshon Nellum (1 May 89) had a convincing 400m win with 45.40, his second best effort after the 45.38 recorded while winning at the US junior nationals. The time is also the second best in the history of the Championships.

Trinidad and Tobago’s Zwede Hewitt and Ade Alleyne Forte completed the podium with clocks of 46.04 and 46.27, both pbs.

Jamaican Bobbygaye Wilkins (10 Sep 88) took the women’s 400 in 51.72, a new championship record and PB. Wilkins upset American Jessica Beard (third in 51.91) who had the best time of the participants (51.63 at Columbus, Ohio, on 2 June 07). Second, with the same 51.91 time of Beard, was Canadian Jenna Martin, who also set a pb.

The only double-individual-winner of the weekend was USA’s Johnny Dutch (20 Jan 89) in the 100m Hurdles and 400m Hurdles. In the first event he set a new Championship record with the 0.99m obstacles, used at the event for the first time, with a 13.46 time, a PB (wind 0.9).

The American left Peruvian Jorge McFarlane in second with 13.51 (new South American junior record; Mc Farlane also won the Long Jump with 7.59) and Barbados Ryan Brathwaite in third with 13.61.

Dutch’s second win, in the 400m Hurdles, came with a 50.82 time, beating compatriot Jason Pérez (51.22) and Colombian Juan Pablo Maturana (51.38).

Historic medal for Fatecha

Paraguayan Víctor Fatecha (10 Mar 88), fourth at the 2006 IAAF World Junior Championships, confirmed his position as favourite in the Javelin Throw, and won the event with a new Championship record of 75.43m, still short of the 78.01 South American junior record set by Fatecha himself in Fortaleza, on 16 May. That mark has him placed second at the 2007 World Junior lists.

Fatecha’s victory in São Paulo was the first ever for Paraguay in the history of the Pan-American Junior Championships. Previously, the country had only won 3 medals, and here Fatecha added his gold and Olga Katryna Subeldía a silver one, also in the Javelin (second to Brazilian Jucilene de Lima).

American Christopher Hill, the national junior record holder (72.80), was second of Fatecha with 71.87, and Mexico’s Juan José Méndez was third with a 70.68 PB.

In the women’s 100m race, American Lynne Lane (1 Apr 88) set a new Championship record with 11.24 (wind 0.8), a new PB. After taking heat 1 in 11.53, Lane had the best reaction of the field in the final (176/1000), and won by 20/100 over Brazilian Rosângela Santos (20 Dec 90). Santos set a PB and moved into a potential medal contention for the upcoming IAAF World Youth Championships. Jamaican Shillone Calvert completed the podium with 11.47.

Lane also anchored the 4x100 American victory in 43.71, teaming with Kenyanna Wilson, Shataya Hendricks and Madison McNarry. The time is the best in the world in 2007 by a junior quartet.

More Championship records

One of the oldest records of the competition was broken twice by American Kristi Castlin (7 Jul 88) in the 100m Hurdles. The 13.38 time ran by fellow American Yolanda Johnson in 1986 was beaten by Castlin in heat 1 with 13.11 (wind 0.4), and then again in the final with 13.02 (-0.8). Castlin set the American junior record with 12.91 in Gainesville, FL, on 26 May, a performance that moved her to fourth spot on the all-time junior lists. She also has ran a wind aided 12.82 (2.1 wind, at College Park, MD on 21 April).

Her compatriot Queen Harrison (10 Sep 88) was second with 13.20, while Jamaican Kimberley Laing was third with 13.85.

Harrison, who placed fifth at the NCAA Championships with 12.98 at 100m Hurdles, and third with 55.98 at 400m Hurdles (the best world junior time of the season), won the latter event in São Paulo with a Championship record of 56.25. Harrison left Trinidad and Tobago’s Janiel Bellille in second place (56.94; NR-j) and American Jacquelyn Coward in third (57.21).

In the Pole Vault, American Alicia Rue (4 Aug 88) set another Championship record with a 4.20m PB. Canadian Gabriella Duclos-Lasnier, who had already jumped 4.20 this season, was second with 4.15, and 2005 World Youth Championships silver medallist, Venezuela’s Keisa Monterola, was third with 4.10.

The remaining Championship record of the event was set by the US women’s team at the 4x400m relay. The Americans (Brandi Cross, Latavia Thomas, Brehanna Jacobs and Jessica Beard) ran 3:29.67, the best junior time of the year. The team from Trinidad and Tobago was second with a national junior record time of 3:35.28 and Jamaica was third with 3:35.36.

Eduardo Biscayart for the IAAF

Results

Men

100m (7 July) (-1.1)
1 Keston Bledman TRI 10.32
2 Yohan Blake JAM 10.34
3 Arthur Wims USA 10.40

200m (8) (-0.9)
1 Arthur Wims USA 20.80
2 Tyrell Cuffy CAY 20.83
3 Dax Danns GUY 21.20

400m (7)
1 Bryshon Nellum USA 45.40
2 Zwede Hewitt TRI 46.04
3 Ade Alleyne Forte TRI 46.27

800m (7)
1 Andrew Heaney CAN 1:48.52
2 Jamaal James TRI 1:48.87
3 Jonathan Moore USA 1:49.17

1500m (8)
1 Matthew Centrowitz USA 3:56.63
2 Andrew Acosta USA 3:56.64
3 Diego Borrego MEX 3:56.87

5000m (6)
1 Diego Borrego MEX 14:33.16
2 Elliot Heath USA 14:34.06
3 Róbson Lima BRA 14:34.23

10,000m (7)
1 Kenneth Klotz USA 31:04.57
2 Jefferson Peña COL 31:06.05
3 Ademilson Santana BRA 31:28.28

3000m Steeplechase (8)
1 Marvin Blanco VEN 9:04.38
2 Luis Orta VEN 9:06.59
3 Osmani Calzado CUB 9:08.19

110m hurdles - 0.99m (6) (0.9)
1 Johnny Dutch USA 13.46 *
2 Jorge McFarlane PER 13.51 AR-j
3 Ryan Brathwaite BAR 13.61

400m hurldes (8)
1 Johnny Dutch USA 50.82
2 Jason Pérez USA 51.22
3 Juan Pablo Maturana COL 51.38

HJ (7)
1 Jamal Wilson BAH 2.11
2 Kevin Snyder USA 2.08
3 Felipe Lobo Ribeiro BRA 2.05

PV (6)
1 Scott Roth USA 5.30
2 Jordan Scott USA 5.10
3 Rodrigo Tenorio CHI 4.70

LJ (6)
1 Jorge McFarlane PER 7.59/0.1
2 Julian Reid JAM 7.55/0.3
3 Diego Ferrín ECU 7.44/0.1

TJ (8)
1 Héctor Fuentes CUB 16.61/0.0
2 Zuheir Sharif USA 16.23/0.9
3 Kyron Blaise TRI 15.81/0.6

SP – 6Kg (6)
1 Nicholas Robinson USA 18.60
2 Raymond Brown JAM 18.33
3 Justin Greif CAN 18.20

DT – 1.75Kg (7)
1 Luke Bryant USA 59.45
2 Nicholas Robinson USA 55.93
3 Osmel Cardosa CUB 54.80

HT – 6Kg (7)
1 Walter Henning USA 69.89
2 Marco Requena VEN 63.65
3 Wilfredo de Jesús PUR 63.15

JT (8)
1 Víctor Fatecha PAR 75.43 *
2 Christopher Hill USA 71.87
3 Juan José Méndez MEX 70.68

Dec – Junior (6, 7)
1 Diego Araújo BRA 7100
11.29/0.2 6.80/0.3 10.16 2.04 48.12 14.41/0.0 31.18 4.20 44.84 4.36.58
2 Nicholas Adcock USA 7074
11.37/0.2 6.28/0.9 14.30 1.95 48.57 14.26/0.0 26.76 3.90 52.84 4.37.49
3 José Matagira COL 6778
11.35/0.2 6.61/-0.4 13.69 1.83 51.56 14.40/0.0 37.48 3.80 44.10 4.59.51

4x100m (7)
1 USA (Wims, Crawford, Stevenson, Williams) 39.43
2 TRI (Glasgow, Bacchus, Morgan, Bledman) 40.11
3 COL (Riascos, Gómez, Valencia, Maturana) 40.40 NR

4x400m (8)
1 TRI (Hewitt, Toppin, Morgan, Forte) 3:05.70
2 USA (Simmons, Ward, Dutch, Nellum) 3:06.15
3 JAM (Coote, Hylton, Peart, Blake) 3:06.17

10,000m Walk (7)
1 Mauricio Arteaga ECU 43:30.64
2 Víctor Hugo Mendoza ESA 43:57.74
3 Dejaime Oliveira BRA 44:09.01

Women

100m (6) (0.8)
1 Lynne Layne USA 11.24 *
2 Rosângela Santos BRA 11.44
3 Schillonie Calvert JAM 11.47

200m (8) (0.5)
1 Bianca Knight USA 23.17
2 Schillonie Calvert JAM 23.23
3 Samantha Henry JAM 23.26

400m (7)
1 Bobbygaye Wilkins JAM 51.72 *
2 Jenna Martin CAN 51.91
3 Jessica Beard USA 51.91

800m (7)
1 Latavia Thomas USA 2:06.59
2 Jessica Smith CAN 2:07.27
3 Sheila Reid CAN 2:08.13

1500m (8)
1 Jessica Pixler USA 4:21.09
2 Lindsay Carson CAN 4:24.06
3 Yudisleidis Fuentes CUB 4:24.92

3000m (7)
1 Nicole Blood USA 9:22.35
2 Marie-Louise Asselin CAN 9:26.09
3 Jessica O’Connell CAN 9:56.33

5000m (8)
1 Marie-Louise Asselin CAN 17:40.28
2 Milena Pérez CUB 17:46.38
3 Emily Sisson USA 17:47.81

3000m Steeplechase (7)
1 Danelle Woods CAN 10:13.98 NR-j
2 Milena Pérez CUB 10:20.93 AR-j
3 Kauren Tarver USA 10:52.08

100m hurdles (6) (-0.8)
1 Kristi Castlin USA 13.02 *
2 Queen Harrison USA 13.20
3 Kimberley Laing JAM 13.85

400m hurdles (8)
1 Queen Harrison USA 56.25 *
2 Janeil Bellille TRI 56.94 NR-j
3 Jacquelyn Coward USA 57.21

HJ (8)
1 Lesyani Mayor CUB 1.85
2 Patience Coleman USA 1.79
3 Daiana Sturtz ARG 1.73

PV (8)
1 Alicia Rue USA 4.20 *
2 Gabriella Duclos-Lasnier CAN 4.15
3 Keisa Monterota VEN 4.10

LJ (7)
1 Jamesha Youngblood USA 6.40/0.9
2 Bianca Stuart BAH 6.12/2.2
3 Arantxa King VER 6.10/-1.1

TJ (8)
1 Ke’Nyia Richardson USA 13.55/1.3
2 Kimberley Williams JAM 13.38/3.7
3 Ashika Charan USA 12.87/1.5

SP (7)
1 Natalia Ducó CHI 16.40
2 Nneka Ugochukwu USA 14.52
3 Renata Severiano BRA 13.96

DT (6)
1 Emily Pendleton USA 49.09
2 Samantha Musil USA 46.50
3 Luz Montaño COL 45.20

HT (8)
1 Marynna Dias BRA 60.26 NR-j
2 Arianni Vichy CUB 59.46
3 Heather Steacy CAN 54.49

JT (6)
1 Jucilene de Lima BRA 49.42
2 Katryna Subeldía PAR 46.41
3 Marissa Tschida USA 44.82

Hep (7, 8)
1 Brianne Theissen CAN 5413
14.29/0.0 1.76 10.8 25.05/0.5 (3330/2) 5.54/0.8 39.56 2.28.52
2 Shana Woods USA 5307
13.83/0.0 1.70 10.21 24.33/0.5 (3350/1) 5.70/0.0 30.61 2.28.64
3 Giovana Cavaleti BRA 4957
15.13/0.0 1.55 12.04 25.42/0.3 (3016/4) 5.41/0.7 35.16 2.30.06

4x100m (7)
1 USA (Wilson, Hendricks, McNarry, Layne) 43.71
2 BRA (A.C. da Silva, Leôncio, Krasucki, R. Santos) 43.98 AR-j
3 TRI (B. St. Louis, Hackett, S. St. Louis, Giles) 44.69

4x400m (8)
1 USA (Cross, Thomas, Jacobs, Beard) 3:29.67 *
2 TRI (Bellille, S. St. Louis, Walker, B. St. Louis) 3:35.28 NR-j
3 JAM (Reid, Calvert, Henry, Cutenar) 3:35.36

10000m Walk (8)
1 Ingrid Hernández COL 48:48.54
2 Lauren Forgues USA 51:43.43
3 Fariluz Morales PER 54:39.28

* New Championship Record

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