Kingston College (KC), Jamaica College (JC), and Calabar High are locked in a fierce rivalry as they prepare for the upcoming Corporate Area Championships, a critical preparatory event for the prestigious ISSA/GraceKennedy Boys’ and Girls’ Athletics Championships (Champs) in April. The two-day championship is scheduled for February 20-21 at the Ashenheim Stadium on the Jamaica College campus, following its official launch at the NHT Sports Club.
Defending champion KC, under the guidance of new head coach Richard Smith, is determined to retain the trophy named after their principal, Dave Myrie. Last year, KC dominated with a commanding 50-point lead over runners-up JC, while Calabar secured a distant third place. Coach Smith emphasized the event’s dual role as both a performance benchmark and a crucial confidence-builder for his squad, known as the Famed Purples.
Meanwhile, JC’s head coach Duane Johnson, whose team is favored to win both the Corporate Area title and the upcoming Champs, highlighted the meet’s predictive power. Noting a strong correlation between Corporate Area results and Champs victories over the past six to seven years, Johnson views the event as an essential diagnostic tool to fine-tune his team’s strategy one month before the main competition.
The competition has already commenced with three finals concluded at the Youngster Goldsmith Classic last Saturday. JC currently leads the standings with 29 points from steeplechase and pole vault events, followed by KC with 14 points. Excelsior High and Calabar High trail with eight and six points respectively.
For Julian Robinson, newly appointed head coach of Calabar High, the championship represents an opportunity to claim his first title while testing various team combinations and providing valuable early exposure to championship conditions for novice athletes.