Vincentian earns Carifta Silver

St. Vincent and the Grenadines’ drought of medals at the Junior Carifta Championships ended last Monday at the George Odlum Stadium in St. Lucia, when Delhonni Nichol-Samuel copped Silver in the Men’s Under-20 5000 meters.

It was his second medal in his fourth year at the Games.{{more}} Nichol-Samuel’s time in the event was 15 mins 42.51 secs. The winner was Kemoy Campbell of Jamaica, whose winning time of 14 mins 40 secs proved to be a record breaking run, eclipsing his old mark at the Carifta level, which he set last year in St. Kitts/Nevis.

Nichol-Samuel moved up the Under-20 Division last year, after his first two years at the Under-17, which saw him gaining a third place in the 1500m race, when the Games touched down in the Turks and Caicos Islands. Then, he was the lone medallist for St. Vincent and the Grenadines.

Born to a Vincentian father, Dane Samuel, who hails from the potent sporting community of Sion Hill, Nichol-Samuel, who lives in Manitoba, Canada, comes from good stock. His aunt Bigna, is also a former St. Vincent and the Grenadines long distance athlete who gained gold at the Central American and Caribbean Juvenile Championships in 1982.

Nichol-Samuel was the stand out performer for St. Vincent and the Grenadines as he also was in the Final of the 1500m, after successfully getting past the elimination phase, but had to settle for sixth spot in the medal race.

The only other Vincentian to get past the first round was Courtney Williams in the Men’s Under-20 200m sprint. He, however, failed to reach the finals. Williams also participated in the 100m.

The other members of the Vincentian contingent were Lyndon Samuel , who competed in the Boys Under-17 400m and 800m; Collette Charles in the Women’s Under-20 Triple Jump ; Kyle Greaves in the Men’s Under-20 , 200m and 400m, and Nikita Toney in the Girls Under-17 Shot Putt. (RT)