KINGSTON, Jamaica — The Jamaican Athletics Administrative Association (JAAA) National Championships delivered exciting semi-final action in the men’s and women’s 200-meter events on Saturday, with defending women’s champion Ashanti Moore and 2023 men’s runner-up Christopher Taylor emerging as the top athletes to advance to the upcoming final.
Moore, who already secured a spot in the women’s 100-meter final a day earlier, delivered a dominant performance to win her semi-final heat, crossing the finish line in 22.88 seconds against a -1.2 meters per second headwind. Behind her in the same heat, Lavanya Williams clocked a new personal best of 23.06 seconds, while Jodean Williams notched a 23.05-second season’s best to also move on to the final.
In the second women’s semi-final, contested into a much stronger -4.0 m/s headwind, Alana Reid finished second in 23.74 seconds, and Niesha Burgher took third in 23.82 seconds, both earning their places in the final round.
On the men’s side, Taylor turned in a standout showing to win his semi-final, posting a new 2024 season’s best time of 20.49 seconds despite a challenging -2.9 m/s headwind. He outpaced Roshawn Clark, a former national 400-meter hurdles champion, who finished second in the heat with a solid 20.63-second run to claim his spot in the final.
Other men’s athletes advancing to the 200m final include Jevaughn Powell, who topped the first round of qualifying earlier in the competition and notched a 20.73-second run in the semi-finals against a -4.5 m/s headwind, Adrian Kerr, who finished just behind Powell in 20.76 seconds in the same heat, and Kadrian Goldson, who sealed his spot with a 21.00-second run against a -4.0 m/s headwind. The 200m final is scheduled to take place in the coming days of the national championships, where athletes will compete for Jamaican national titles and qualifying spots for upcoming international competitions.