Two Jamaican collegiate athletes have earned prestigious conference honors following record-shattering performances in horizontal jumping events last weekend. Shantae Foreman of Clemson University and Lansford Cunningham of Tusculum University were both recognized as the top field event athletes in their respective conferences.
Competing at the Orange and Purple Invitational hosted by Clemson University, Shantae Foreman delivered a spectacular performance in the women’s triple jump. The former St. Jago athlete soared to a world-leading distance of 14.17 meters on her sole attempt of the competition. This remarkable achievement established a new Clemson University program record, surpassing the previous benchmark of 13.85 meters set by Portugal’s Patricia Mamona in 2010. Foreman’s jump also broke her personal best of 13.84 meters set last season.
Foreman’s performance has significant implications in both collegiate and international athletics. Her mark eclipsed the previous world lead of 13.87 meters set by France’s Clemence Rougier in Limoges on January 17. Additionally, it now ranks as the second-best indoor triple jump performance by a Jamaican woman in history, trailing only Suzette Lee’s 14.25 meters recorded in Indianapolis back in March 1997.
Meanwhile, Lansford Cunningham, a former Cornwall College athlete competing for NCAA Division II Tusculum University, achieved his first weekly conference recognition. At the Hokie Invite held at Virginia Tech on Saturday, Cunningham leaped to a personal best of 7.42 meters in the men’s long jump, earning him second place in the competition. This performance extended his own Tusculum University program record, improving upon his previous mark of 7.32 meters set just two weeks earlier.
These accomplishments highlight the continued excellence of Jamaican athletes in track and field, particularly in jumping events, while demonstrating their competitive prowess within the American collegiate system.