A beaming Danielle Thompson of Mount St Joseph Prep in Mandeville, collects her gold medal from Garth Burke (left), sports director at Belair, during last Saturday's Invitational track meet. - photo by Richard Bryan

Mandeville:

Vaz Prep, St Catherine Prep and host school Belair were the dominant schools at the first ever invitational athletic championships for youngsters in Mandeville at the weekend.

Vaz topped the standings with 118 points, followed by St Catherine, 111.5, with Belair a creditable third with 109.

Intermittent showers throughout the day never dampened the performances, the flow of the events or the enthusiasm of the close to 2,000 fans and parents on hand. This was largely helped by several tents erected to accommodate spectators, as well as a number of sponsors' booths.

The running track held up well and the events and presentations lasted just after five 'o clock, with most persons canvassed, providing a good opinion of the inaugural staging, coordinated by Olympian Deon Hemmings and the sports committee at Belair.

Vaz provided the overall boys champion with Jahleel Hyde comfortably topping all performers with 33 points.

Danielle Thompson of Mandeville-based Mount St Joseph Prep was the overall girls' champion with 21 points, just edging Belair's Sydney Marshall, another of the day's impressive performers in Class Two.

57. 90 secs time

The vesatile Hyde, who competed in Class One, posted a time of 57. 90 secs in winning heat eight of the 400m, the day's first event. He then returned to land the long jump at 4.92 metres, before registering a time of 27 seconds in winning heat seven of the 200m, and was third overall.

Meadowbrook's Dajor Wilson, whose heat time of 59 seconds was second to Hyde in the 400m, topped the 200m with an impressive 25.40, followed by Antonio Davis of Belair, 25.90.

Thompson topped the Class One girls 150m with a time of 20.50 secs. She ran 46 seconds in the 300m for third overall, while her time of 13.80 in the 100m shared second place with two others behind the best time of 13. 60 by Ornella Bishop of St Catherine Prep.

Sydney Marshall, who is expected to do well in the upcoming all-island prep school championship, won the two events in which she competed - the Class Two 100m in 14.00 seconds and the 60m in 8.30.

Other significant winners were Class Two's champion boy, Alex Robinson of Vaz, and teammate Lori Sharpe in the Girl's Class One.