The George Odlum Stadium in Vieux Fort witnessed extraordinary athletic performances during the opening of the Independence Games Track & Field Championships on February 14th, as two emerging high jump talents delivered career-best performances that secured their positions for the upcoming CARIFTA Games.
Destinee Cenac, the reigning Female Student Athlete of the Year from Morne Stars, elevated her already impressive record by clearing 1.71 meters in the high jump competition. This remarkable achievement not only shattered her previous personal best but also matched the gold medal-winning height from last year’s CARIFTA Games in Trinidad & Tobago, where she earned bronze in the Under-17 division. Her performance exceeded the Saint Lucia Athletics Association’s qualifying standard by a significant margin.
Equally impressive was 15-year-old Randall Monroe from the Saint Lucia Sports Academy, who delivered a breakthrough performance by clearing 1.90 meters. His exceptional leap comfortably surpassed the 1.83m qualifying threshold and established a new personal best, continuing Saint Lucia’s distinguished tradition in high jump athletics that has produced more CARIFTA medals than any other discipline for the island nation.
These outstanding performances bring Saint Lucia’s total qualified athletes for Grenada 2026 to at least four competitors. The regional junior athletics festival will take place over Easter weekend from April 4-6.
The championships also featured notable performances in throwing events. Elite’s Albert Reynolds, a former OECS record holder and CARIFTA champion, dominated the men’s javelin throw with a 65.31m effort. In shot put competitions, Sean Pilgrim of Pacesetters led the Under-20 category with 12.29m, while Kyle Gilbert of Morne Stars achieved 11.82m and Elijah Fred of Survivors recorded 11.89m in the Under-17 division.
Gilbert doubled as discus throw champion with a 36.22m throw, while Jennica Albert of Morne Stars claimed victories in both the Under-20 shot put (9.26m) and women’s discus throw (25.35m). Clowie William of SLSA won the women’s javelin throw with 31.77m, though falling short of the qualifying standard.
The championships will continue with long jump, triple jump, and track events scheduled for February 28 and March 1 at Soufriere Stadium.