The 2026 OECS Track and Field Championships delivered a historic moment for Antigua and Barbuda’s athletics program on Wednesday, as sprinters Geolyna Dowdye and Soniya Jones climbed the women’s 100 meters podium together at St. Kitts’ Kim Collins Athletics Stadium. Dowdye clocked an impressive 11.47 seconds to claim the silver medal, while Jones followed just behind with a personal-best-equaling 11.65 seconds to take bronze, wrapping up a dominant final performance from the Caribbean nation’s rising sprint stars. The gold medal ultimately went to Saint Lucia’s Jady Emmanuel, who edged out the competition with a winning time of 11.39 seconds to top the results sheet.
What made the occasion even more meaningful for Antigua and Barbuda was the presence of the country’s own sprint legend Daniel “Bakka” Bailey, who had the honor of placing the medals around the two young athletes’ necks during the official ceremony. Bailey, whose 10.19-second men’s 100m OECS Championship record set back in 2014 still stands unbroken more than a decade later, received a standing ovation from the crowd as he congratulated the new generation of sprint talent on their achievement. The dual medals marked an important addition to Antigua and Barbuda’s overall medal count at this year’s championships, reinforcing the country’s strong showing across all track and field disciplines throughout the week-long competition and highlighting the success of its youth athlete development programs.