A wave of outstanding performances from Saint Lucian track and field athletes competing in U.S. collegiate competitions has pushed three closer to securing spots at the 2026 Glasgow Commonwealth Games, while one athlete claimed a new national personal best that sets a new benchmark for the island nation.
The 2026 Commonwealth Games are scheduled to run from July 23 to August 2 in Glasgow, Scotland. To earn a spot on Saint Lucia’s national team, athletes must hit the pre-determined qualifying standard set by the Saint Lucia Athletics Association three times – a milestone several competitors are already well on their way to reaching.
Sprint hurdler Aasia Laurencin, a graduate of the University of Michigan, became the seventh Saint Lucian athlete to hit the 2026 Commonwealth qualifying standard during her appearance at the Tom Jones Memorial, hosted in Gainesville, Florida on April 18. Running into a legal wind speed of 1.5 meters per second, Laurencin clocked 12.76 seconds in the preliminary round before taking second place in the final with a 12.81-second finish. The result marks the fastest season opener in Laurencin’s career, and currently ranks her fifth globally for the 2026 outdoor season in the women’s 100m hurdles.
Halfway across the country in Azusa, California, Kansas University senior Michael Joseph also delivered a standout performance at the Bryan Clay Invitational on April 19. Joseph clocked 46.45 seconds to take second place in the men’s 400m, notching his second qualifying standard for the 2026 Commonwealth Games. On the same Florida meet card as Laurencin, 19-year-old Naomi London, competing for the University of Texas, also earned her second qualifying mark. London ran 23.50 seconds to finish ninth in the women’s 200m, and added a 11.43-second finish for 23rd place in the women’s 100m.
The three athletes join four other Saint Lucian competitors who have already hit at least one qualifying standard for Glasgow 2026: 2022 Birmingham Commonwealth Games women’s 100m silver medallist Julien Alfred, women’s high jumper Jenneil Jacobie, men’s 110m hurdler Khailan Vitalis, and fellow men’s 400m runner Marvric Pamphile.
Beyond the Commonwealth qualifying milestones, thrower Joy Edward continued her upward trajectory following a recent coaching change and technical adjustments at the West Virginia Wesleyan Jasmine Clagett Memorial in Buckhannon, West Virginia. Edward has now consistently broken the 15-meter barrier in the women’s shot put, and claimed victory at the meet with a new personal best throw of 15.63m, improving on her previous top mark of 15.48m set just weeks earlier. She also took gold in the women’s hammer throw with a 54.73m effort, and placed 12th in the discus with a 28.59m throw.
A host of other Saint Lucian athletes also recorded solid results across a series of U.S. collegiate meets in the same weekend. In the women’s 100m, Jola Felix took third place with a 12.57-second run at the Pioneer Classic, while Narlia Albert clocked 13.63 seconds for 44th at the Paul Donahue Invitational. For the women’s 200m, Carleen Lionel ran 25.94 seconds for 17th at the Paul Donahue Invitational, Felix took fourth with 26.92 at the Pioneer Classic, Malaika George placed fifth with 27.11 at the Rochester Alumni Invitational, and Albert finished 51st with 27.83 at the Paul Donahue Invitational. In the women’s 400m, Kereser Augustin took fourth with 55.39 seconds at the ESU Collegiate Relays, George placed fourth with 1:01.20 at the Rochester Alumni Invitational, and Julianie Gonzague finished fifth with 1:03.71 at the Mentor Cardinal Relays.
On the men’s side, Miguel Charlery took sixth in the 100m with 10.63 seconds at the Shippensburg PR Bonanza, Cagini Pilgrim placed 33rd with 10.72 at the Cal State LA Twilight, and Ishmael Durand finished 36th with 11.41 at the Bill Schmidt Invitational. In the men’s 200m, Pilgrim took third with 21.32 at the Cal State LA Twilight, notched 21.50 for 20th at the Bryan Clay Invitational, while Durand ran 22.72 for 43rd at the Bill Schmidt Invitational. For middle distance, Asa Francis took third in the men’s 800m with 1:51.36 at the Morgan State Legacy Meet, and Rayshawn Harris finished 24th with 1:59.96 in the same race. In throwing events, Shamael Durand placed 10th in the men’s discus with a 37.19m throw and sixth in the men’s javelin with 31.97m at the Bill Schmidt Invitational.