Joyous Easter Sunday for The Bahamas

Thu, Apr 12th 2012, 09:37 AM

HAMILTON, Bermuda - The Bahamas picked up three medals on Easter Sunday morning of the 41st CARIFTA Track and Field Championships in Hamilton, Bermuda.
Drexel Maycock picked up his second medal of the championships as he tossed the discus 45.35 meters (m) - 148' 9-1/2" to win the silver medal in the under-17 boys division. The Bahamas also added bronze medals in the under-20 girls javelin courtesy of Alexandria Paul, and the under-20 boys pole vault courtesy of Tre Adderley.
For Maycock, he was significantly off his personal best of 53m (173' 10-1/2"), which would have been good enough for the gold medal, but he was happy that he was able to win a medal for The Bahamas.
"I don't feel too good about that performance because I know I could have done much better," said Maycock. "I'm happy with the silver medal but not the distance. I just kept planting my foot wrong today and I couldn't push off like I wanted to.
"Every time I throw, I learn something new so I just have to go home now and practice staying in the circle. I'll bounce back," he added.
In that same event, Bahamian Dencil Pratt finished fifth with a best throw of 42.96m (140' 11-1/4"). Trinidadian Kenejah Williams won the gold medal with a distance of 50.36m (165' 2-3/4"), Maycock was strong enough to get the silver, and Jamaican Shamar Kitson held off his teammate Demar Gayle for the bronze medal, with a best toss of 44.34m (145' 5-3/4"), compared to 44.20m (145' 0-1/4") for Gayle. As for Pratt, he has a personal best throw of 48m (157' 5-3/4").
"I'm a lil disappointed because I didn't throw as well as I could have. I wasn't getting as much leverage as I could have and I think that held me back a bit," he said.
Alexandria Marshall competed in the under-20 girls javelin for The Bahamas, and came away with the bronze medal with a toss of 32.62m (107' 0-1/4"). Alexie Alais from French Guiana won that event with a grand throw of 47.17m (154' 9"), Sandrine Mezen from Martinique won the silver medal with a best heave of 44.56m (146' 2-1/4"), and Paul came away with the bronze medal.
"I didn't throw my best but I thank God for the medal," said Paul who has a personal best of 37.93m (124' 5-1/4"). "I had to warm up in the beginning because it was very chilly but I adjusted. I think that The Bahamas is doing very well and I'm proud of all my teammates. We came here to 'Whap', and so far we're doing that," she added.
Paul and the rest of the BTC Team Bahamas adopted the term 'Whap' heading into the 41st CARIFTA Championships. Acronym for 'We having a Party', it caught on among the Bahamian faithful in Bermuda as the phrase 'whap, whap' was often chanted by athletes and the supporters whether it be in the stands, during competition or out on the streets.
The only other medal for Team Bahamas on Easter Sunday morning came via Tre Adderley in the under-20 boys pole vault. Adderley, who was competing in his third CARIFTA Championships, leapt 3.45m (11' 3-3/4") for the bronze medal.
"I just went out there and did my best for my country, and came out with the bronze medal. It feels real good," said Adderley. "The conditions were better than yesterday, but the competition was pretty stiff. I just went out there and focused on what I needed to do.
"I think that we as a country really need to step up and develop our field events. We're doing very well in the sprints but we're not up there in the distance and the field events. Hopefully, we can put it together for the rest of the meet," he added.
Jamaican Xavier Boland won the gold medal in that event with a jump of 4.40m (14' 5-1/4") and Shem Edward of St. Lucia won the silver medal with a height of 4.05m (13' 3-1/2").
The chilly weather conditions in Hamilton, Bermuda hampered the Bahamian athletes during competition, but for the most part, the athletes appeared to be adjusting and were turning some fantastic performances on the track and in the field.

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