EUGENE, Oregon – Jamaica secured three medals on the final day of the World Athletics World U20 Championships, moving up to fourth place on the medal table with 8 medals: 2 gold, 3 silver, and 3 bronze.
Joseph Salmon claimed a bronze medal in the men’s discus, briefly leading the competition with a throw of 64.37 meters in the second round. However, he was surpassed by Estonia’s Sten-Erik IIR, who won silver with a throw of 65.42 meters, and gold medalist Simon Rosselli, who set a national U20 record with his final throw of 66.39 meters. Salmon reflected on his performance: “The competition was good. It is cool to have a world medal; it is not the color I wanted, but I threw with my heart. It was special having Kamari Kennedy with me; we motivated each other.”
Salmon’s teammate, Kamari Kennedy, finished fourth with a lifetime best throw of 64.18 meters. He expressed his satisfaction, saying, “It was an amazing competition. I wanted to throw further, but I am happy with my personal best. It feels incredible to be part of a new generation of throwers in my country. I look up to Ralford Mullings.”
The women’s 4x100m team, consisting of Sashana Johnson, Theianna-Lee Terrelonge, Natrece East, and Shanoya Douglas, won the final with a world U20-leading time of 42.89 seconds. This victory marked Jamaica’s fourth consecutive world U20 title, and their winning time ranks as the fourth-fastest in world U20 history. Shanoya Douglas, who anchored the relay, expressed her pride in the performance: “It has been a long year for the entire Jamaican team, so winning this medal is a great honour. It’s our fourth one in a row.”
The men’s 4x100m relay delivered fireworks, with Team USA, led by the remarkable Tate Taylor, winning in a world U20 record time of 38.16 seconds. Great Britain and Northern Ireland claimed the silver medal with an area U20 record of 38.90 seconds, finishing ahead of Jamaica, who came through in a season’s best time of 39.01 seconds.
Jamaica’s lead-off runner, Kyle Bodden, shared his thoughts: “It is very special for us. We aimed to make it to the podium, and we achieved that.”
The quartet of Kyle Bodden, Gary Card, Nyrone Wade and Sanjay Seymore clocked a season’s best 39.01 seconds to finish third at the World U20 Championships.
The United States won gold with a world U20 record of 38.16, while Great Britain took silver in 38.90.
While Gary Card added, “It feels very special to know that even though I faced some disappointments in this championship, I have teammates who lifted me up so we could win even more awards. I’m grateful for them and this entire team.”
Elsewhere, despite running a season’s best of 3:05.71, Jamaica’s U20 4x400m relay team could finish no higher than fifth in the final. Twelve minutes earlier, the women’s quartet finished a disappointing sixth in 3:34.28.
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