The Saint Lucia Sports Academy witnessed exceptional athletic performances as the Island Champs tournament resumed on Monday, March 17, with Vieux Fort Comprehensive Secondary School (VFCSS) establishing early dominance in throwing events. The school captured four out of six available gold medals during the opening day of field competitions, setting a competitive tone for the championship.
Fifteen-year-old Eavan Edgar delivered a standout performance in the Under-16 boys’ discus throw, achieving a remarkable personal best of 45.13 meters. This throw not only secured him the gold medal but also exceeded the CARIFTA Games qualifying standard of 44 meters. Teammate Renard Bernard contributed to VFCSS’s success by claiming the silver medal in the same event.
Barbara-Marie Maximin, already qualified for CARIFTA in her specialty Under-17 long jump, expanded her achievements by winning the Under-18 discus throw with a distance of 25.50 meters. While this represented one of only two discus golds not won by VFCSS, Maximin’s victory ensured representation from southern schools in the winner’s circle.
Additional discus champions included Neriah Charlery (VFCSS) in Girls U16 with 26.28m, Katelyn Charles (VFCSS) in Girls U20 with 25.51m, and Sean Pilgrim (VFCSS) in Boys U18 with 37.25m. Shawn Hubert from Babonneau secured the Boys U20 title with a throw of 31.80m.
The competition expanded to jumping events on Tuesday featuring long jump, triple jump, and discus across various divisions. Notable performances included Darvin Forde of Sir Arthur Lewis Community College winning the triple jump open with 14.10m, though falling short of the CARIFTA qualifying mark by half a meter. Forde also claimed victory in the long jump with a leap of 6.39m.
Other jumping event winners included Kanil Nelson (St Mary’s College) taking Under-18 long jump gold with 6.25m, Randall Monroe (SLSA) capturing Under-16 long jump with 6.16m, and Christiano Nestor (Choiseul Secondary) dominating the Under-14 division with 5.27m.
The championship now moves to the track semifinals at Daren Sammy Cricket Ground on Wednesday, building toward Sunday’s finals where athletes will compete for top honors in this prestigious interscholastic competition.