As of Friday, May 13, 2022

• Sign in to favorite this
• Discuss1 comment, Blog about
• Share thisEmail, Facebook, Twitter

Shaunae Miller-Uibo

#By BRENT STUBBS

#Senior Sports Reporter

#bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

#With the Wanda Diamond League kicking off today in Doha, Qatar, quarter-miler Shaunae Miller- Uibo said she’s looking forward to running fast but, at the same time, she’s hoping to have some fun competing against her peers.

#Miller-Uibo, preparing to add the World Championship title to her ledger this summer, was addressing the media yesterday, along with Great Britain’s sprinter Dina Asher-Smith and Sweden’s Olympic and World Indoor pole vault champion Mondo Duplantis.

#Competing out of lane five where she will be sandwiched between Dominican Republic’s Marileidy Paulino in four and Jamaican Stephenie Ann McPherson in six, Miller-Uibo said she’s expecting to run well.

#“The main thing is I’m trying a new race model and I’m trying to find that perfect one before Eugene and we can go sub-48,” said Miller-Uibo, who already posted a season’s best of 49.91. “But for right now, it’s just testing things out and getting familiar with it.

#“But I’m expecting some fast times, but overall, I’m just looking forward to some good competition with the girls.”

#Miller-Uibo, coming off her first gold-medal performance at the World Indoors Championships in Belgrade, Serbia in March, is one of three Bahamian athletes competing in the first of the Diamond League series.

#She will be joined by World Indoors’ 100m hurdles silver medallist Devynne Charlton and 60m semifinalist Anthonique Strachan. “We opened and closed our season at the World Champs and think I can’t complain about walking away with the gold medal,” said Miller-Uibo when asked about her indoor campaign this year.

#As she prepares for this year’s season, Miller-Uibo was asked about her approach and she didn’t hesitate to point out that her coach, Lance Brauman, is taking it one step at a time.

#“The main thing is to make sure we train well and we’re making decisions as we go, but right now, the main goal for us in Eugene is to try and take home the title,” she lamented. “So we will see how it goes. But everything is going very well right now and we’re excited to see it.”

#At the last World Championships in Doha in 2019, Miller-Uibo lost out to Bahrain’s Salwa Eid Naser, who has since been suspended by World Athletics for two years for a doping violation. Miller-Uibo came back last year and won the delayed 2020 Olympic Games crown and will now go after the World Championship crown in Eugene in July.

#As she opened her season last year, Miller-Uibo did it with a victory in Eugene at the Hayward Field, which will host this year’s World Championships.

#She’s looking forward to making her appearance in Oregon.

#“It was the first time competing back there after the renovations and it’s a pretty quick track,” said Miller-Uibo about running in Oregon last year.

#“I’m expecting to see some pretty fast times at both the Diamond League and the World Championships, so I’m excited about it and I hope things go very well because the competition is going to be pretty fast.”

#When asked about her training session during the off-season, Miller-Uibo said they have been taking it easy.

#“Obviously, we were coming off an injury after Tokyo, and the coach took a little more time getting me back into the normal schedule with training,” she pointed out. “We stepped it up throughout and we picked up a few knick-knacks here and there but it’s a part of sports.

#“But we’ve been making our way through it and training has been going really well, we’re expecting great things this year and we will see what will come from it.”

#Looking at the landscape of track and field right now, Miller- Uibo said the women’s 400m has certainly become one of the hotly contested events for fans to watch.

#“Just to make the Olympic final last year you had to run sub-50, so it’s pretty hot,” Miller-Uibo said. “Everyone is stepping up their A-game and I’m expected to push forward. I think the ladies coming up right now are exceptional and I think the 400m is going to go very far very soon.”

#On competing at the Olympics without any spectators, Miller-Uibo said it was out of the ordinary, but she’s eager to see what the World Championships hold when they are expected to have the crowd back.

#“It was a little different. I’m someone who feeds off the crowd. That’s where I get my energy boost, so it did feel a little bit like training,” said Miller-Uibo about the difference in having fans in the stands at a meet.

#“I guess I was fortunate that my 400m was more the ending of the track schedule and I had a lot of

#the athletes come out and support, so I was able to hear a few people cheering. It was good, but it was definitely a different feeling. I’m looking forward to having the crowd come back.”

#The crowd is expected to be in the stands in Doha as Miller-Uibo competes with the other Bahamian competitors.

#Charlton, with her season’s best of 12.89, will run out of lane seven in the women’s 100m hurdles. She will be next to Nigeria’s Tobi Amusan (12.61) in six and American Gabriele Cunningham (13.06) in eight. American world record holder Kendra Harrison, with her season’s best of 12.56, is in lane four.

#And Strachan, who has a SB of 22.55, will run out of lane three in the women’s 200m.

#She will trail Asher- Smith, who is in lane four, American Gabrielle Thomas in five and Jamaican Shericka Jackson in six.

As of Sunday, May 15, 2022

• Sign in to favorite this
• DiscussComment, Blog about
• Share thisEmail, Facebook, Twitter

Shaunae Miller-Uibo (File photo)

Steven Gardiner (File photo)

Jamal Wilson (File photo)

#By BRENT STUBBS

#Senior Sports Reporter

#bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

#RESORTING to a new race model, Shaunae Miller-Uibo didn’t get the finish she expected, but it was smooth sailing for quarter-miler Steven Gardiner, high jumper Jamal Wilson and triple jumper Tamara Myers.

#The elite athletes competed in a series of meets in three different locations over three days over the weekend.

#While Gardiner and Wilson both prevailed in Ponce, Puerto Rico on Thursday, and Myers soared to victory in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic on Saturday, Miller-Uibo struggled in Doha, Qatar on Friday.

#At the start of the Wanda Diamond League in Doha, Miller-Uibo faded down the stretch to third place in the women’s 400m in 51.84 seconds. Dominican Republic’s Marileidy Paulino got the win in a season’s best of 51.20.

Marileidy Paulino of Dominican Republic celebrates after winning the women’s 400m race at the Qatar Diamond League athletics meet in Doha, Qatar, Friday. (AP Photo/Hussein Sayed)

#Paulino was the silver medalist behind Miller-Uibo as she secured her second consecutive gold medal in the women’s 400m at the delayed 2020 Olympic Games last August in Tokyo, Japan.

#Miller-UIibo, who had surged ahead of the pack on the back stretch, only to watch as Paulino took over on the home stretch. As Miller-Uibo attempted to go after Paulino, she ran out of real estate and as she slowed down going through the finish line, Miller-Uibo was passed by Jamaican Stephanie Ann McPherson in her season’s best of 51.69 for second.

#Miller-Uibo, the World Athletics’ World Indoor Championship’s 400m champion in Belgrade, Serbia in March, was joined by two other members of Team Bahamas from the championships at the meet in Doha.

Devynne Charlton (File photo)

#Devynne Charlton, coming of her silver medal performance in the women’s 60m hurdles at the World indoors, ran 12.61 in Doha in the women’s 100m hurdles for fourth place in 12.61.

#American world record holder Kendra Harrison took the tape in 12.43. Nigeria’s Tobi Amusan was second and Jamaican Britany Anderson got third in a photo finish in 12.44.

Anthonique Strachan (File photo)

#And Anthonique Strachan, a semifinalist in the 60m at the World’s Indoors, ran 22.78 for fifth place in the women’s 200m as American Gabrielle Thomas posted a season’s best of 21.98 to erase fellow American Felix Allyson’s meet record of 21.98 that she established in 2015.

#Strachan’s MVP training partner in Jamaica, Shericka Jackson, was second in a season’s best of 22.07; Great Britain’s Dina Asher-Smith was third in her season’s best of 22.37 and American Tamara Clark was fourth in 22.72.

#Gardiner/Wilson in Puerto Rico

#Moving down to the 300m, Abaco native Steven Gardiner stretched out his 6-foot, 3-inch frame for an easy win in 31.52, well ahead of American Vernon Norwood, who picked up second in 31.81. Jamaican Nathan Allen was third in 32.04.

#In a field of five competitors, including two Bahamians, Jamal Wilson soared to victory with a leap of 7-feet, 3 ¼-inches or 2.22 metres in the men’s high jump. Donald Thomas finished at the other end of the spectrum in fifth place with 7-2 ¼ (2.19m).

Tamara Myers (File photo)

#Myers wins/Culmer second

#Tamara Myers and Kaiwan Culmer picked up a victory and second place respectively in the women’s and men‘s triple jump at the Felix Sanchez Track Classic in Santo Domingo, the Dominican Republic.

#The duo were accompanied by their Leap of Faith coach James Rolle.

#Myers, the Bahamian national record holder, soared 43-11 ¾ (13.40m) to clinch the win in the women’s triple jump, despite competing in the rain and wind.

#Culmer came in second in the men’s segment of the hop, skip and jump event with 51-5 ½ (15.68m). American Donald Scott cleared 52-11 (16.13m) to snatch the title.

#Two other Bahamians also competed in the meet with Grand Bahamian Alonzo Russell taking fifth place in the men’s 400m in 46.00, while Shakeem Smith had to settle for sixth place in the men’s 400m hurdles in 51.24.

As of Monday, May 16, 2022

• Sign in to favorite this
• DiscussComment, Blog about
• Share thisEmail, Facebook, Twitter

SWIMMERS in action at the Alpha Aquatic Spring Invitational held over the weekend at the Betty Kelly Kenning Swim Complex. Photos by Racardo Thomas/Tribune Staff

#By BRENT STUBBS

#Senior Sports Reporter

#bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

#THE Mako Swim Club carted off the overall title in the Alpha Aquatic Spring Invitational held at the Betty Kelly Kenning Swim Complex over the weekend.

#Mako, coached by Travano McPhee, dominated the two-day event by collecting a total of 1,026 points, well ahead of the Barracuda Swim Club with 921. 50.

#Host Alpha Aquatics ended up in third place with 606.50 points.

#Rounding out the rest of the field in order were the Blue Waves Swim Club in fourth with 544 5; Lyford Swim Club was fifth with 480; Mantas Swim & Water Polo Club sixth with 445. 50 7; Black Marlins Swim Club seventh with 238. 50 8; Lightning Aquatics eighth with 99 9; Turk and Caicos Aquatics Club ninth with 56; Unattached – Alpha Aquatics tenth with 40 and the Sea Waves Aquatic Team 11th with 31.

#The meet was the second one for the Bahamas Aquatics’ calendar since the national team returned home with their fourth consecutive victory at the recent CARIFTA Swim Championships in Barbados over the Easter holiday weekend.

#And according to Alpha Aquatic Club’s president Celestial Deveaux, it was good to provide the opportunity for the New Providence-based swimmers and those coming home from college to compete in a tune-up for the National Swim Championships in June.

#Winning the high point trophies for the outstanding performances in the various age groups were the following:

#Under-8 girls – Isabella Munroe and Leniah Hamilton provided a 1-2 punch for Mako Aquatic with first and second places with 54 and 31 points respectively.

#Under-8 boys – Mantas’ Asher Bastian captured the title with 45 and Alpha’s Fraser Menzies was the runner-up with 33.

#9-10 girls – Tiah Seymour of Mantas Swim & Water Polo Club won with 46 over Mako’s Taylen Nicolls, who had 37.

#9-10 boys – Mako got another sweep of the top two spots as Keiron Lloyd won with 52 and Blair Thompson trailed with 29.

#Girls 11-12 – Two different clubs prevailed as Saleste Gibson emerged the winner for the Barracuda Swim Club with 54 and Alexia Zatarain of the Lyford Swim Club was second with 42.

#Boys 11-12 – Mako Swim Club again posted a 1-2 finish with Lenin Hamilton earning 57 and Trace Russell got 41.

#Girls 13-14 – The Lyford Cay Club shined as Elina Fiaux took the title with 37 over Adriel Pratt of the Black Marlins Swim Club, who had 34.

#Boys 13-14 – The Turks and Caicos Islands got some hardware as Tajhari Williams collected 56 to out-dual Alpha Aquatics’ Jarrod Charles with 40.

#Girls 15-and-over – Delaney Mizell got another boost for the Lyford Swim Club with 42, Mia Sastre of the Black Marlins Swim Club came up short in second with 40.

#Boys 15-and-over – The same results occurred as Roman Pinder came through for Lyford Swim Club with 45 over Joshua Murray of the Black Marlins Swim Club with 41.

#Although she didn’t get to peak at the results because of the duties she had to fulfill on deck, Deveaux said Alpha Aquatics was quite pleased with the performances from the clubs and the swimmers who participated.

#“I’ve been in touch with our coaches and they have been telling me that the kids have been dropping their times,” she said. “I checked the meet mobile and it was true, so I’m very pleased with where our club is heading into Nationals.”

#Although all of the spotlight is placed on track and field, Deveaux assured the fans that swimming is definitely the sport to watch and she encouraged the spectators to come out to the nationals and watch the keen competition on display at the stadium.

#Despite the action being interrupted on Friday because of the rain, the meet came to a successful conclusion on Saturday. What made it even more exciting was the rhymical sounds of the junkanoo music that was played in the stands.

#Up next on the Bahamas Aquatics’ calendar will be the Mako Aquatics Swim Meet on May 28, followed by the 50th edition of the National Swim Championships that will be held in honour of the late swim executive extraordinaire John Bradley July 7-10.

#Quite a number of swimmers attained the qualifying standards to be eligible to compete in the nationals, while there were three swimmers who qualified for the Central American and Caribbean Amateur Swimming Confederation’s Championships (CCCAN), scheduled for July 8-14 in Barbados.

#But according to Bahamas Aquatics’ president Algernon Cargill, the Bahamas won’t be participating in CCCAN as it conflicts with the dates for the Nationals.

#Nonetheless, Barracuda’s Saleste Gibson qualified in the 11-12 girls 50m butterfly in 31.38, surpassing the standard of 31.45, while Lenin Hamilton of Mako Aquatic posted a pair of marks in the boys 11-12 50m butterfly in 29.78 (standard 29.90) and the 50m freestyle in 27.71 (standard 27.92) and Caleb Hepburn of Alpha duplicated the feat in the boys 13-14 50m free in 25.23 (standard of 25.58) and the 100m butterfly in 1:00.63 (standard 1:01.76).

AFTER winning their opener by a pair of goals, the Bahamas men’s national soccer team lost by one to the Turks and Caicos Islands in the second game of their two friendly matches played over the weekend at the Thomas A Robinson National Stadium. Photos by Racardo Thomas/Tribune Staff

As of Monday, May 16, 2022

• Sign in to favorite this
• DiscussComment, Blog about
• Share thisEmail, Facebook, Twitter

#By BRENT STUBBS

#Senior Sports Reporter

#bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

#AFTER winning their opener by a pair of goals, the Bahamas men’s national soccer team lost by one to the Turks and Caicos Islands in the second game of their two friendly matches played over the weekend at the Thomas A Robinson National Stadium.

#Thanks to goals from Wood Julmis in the 10th minute, Daylan Russell in the 34th and Lesley St Fleur in the 45th, the Bahamas took a 3-1 lead into the half and added their final goal in the 64th from Evert Julmis in the second half to hold onto the win.

#Turks and Caicos, who got the equaliser from Cory Williams in the 10th minute of the first half, added their last goal in the 62nd from MarKenley Amilcar, but it wasn’t enough to push them over the top.

#Saturday was a different story.

#Turks and Caicos jumped out to the initial lead in the 25th minute as Billy Forbes found the back of the net in the first half. They extended it to 2-0 at the 48th mark on Junior Paul’s boot. The Bahamas redeemed itself in the 65th minute on Wood Julmis’ goal, but they fell short.

#“Over the two days, it was really good,” said Bahamas head coach Nesly Jean. “We really put on the match to see how the team would look going into the games on June 3. We tried new players just coming on the team and using some different formations.

#“They’re buying into what we’re trying to do and hopefully by June 3, we will be ready to go.”

#The Bahamas Football Association used the friendly matches to prepare the team for the qualifying round of the CONCACAF 2022 Nations League where the winner and the top teams advance to the playoffs.

#The Bahamas will open up play in their pool on June 3 at the TAR National Stadium before heading on the road to play Trinidad & Tobago to play on June 10. Their final pool play match will be against Nicaragua. Jean said by the time the tournament gets underway on June 3, the Bahamas should have its full team in place.

#“We have a lot of players who haven’t arrived yet. They are still overseas of to school. They should be here by next week,” he said. “Once we bring them in and everybody understand what we are trying to do, I think we will do well.”

#For those players overseas, Jean said they have been provided with the formations the team will be using through a WhatsApp group, so it shouldn’t be a problem for them getting adjusted to what they need to do when they come home.

#Keith Jeffrey, who took over as the head coach of the Tucks and Caicos three weeks ago, said he was impressed with the way they played, going home with the split as they now prepare for their pool play against Bonaire in their opener on June 3 before they follow that up against both the US and British Virgin Islands.

#“Coming after the first game and what we came out and did in the second game, we had a better idea of what the Bahamas is offering and we were able to play to our strength and took away their strength,” he said.

#“I want to commend the players for their hard work and I think going forward, going into the Nations League, this is a morale booster for us. I think we will be very good.”

#With most of their players employed in the fledging tourism and construction industries, Jeffrey said he has been forced to work with who can make it out for their early morning practice or late evening sessions. As a result of their performances here, Jeffrey said the plan has worked for Turks and Caicos.

As of Monday, May 16, 2022

• Sign in to favorite this
• DiscussComment, Blog about
• Share thisEmail, Facebook, Twitter

#By BRENT STUBBS

#Senior Sports Reporter

#bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

#THE collaboration between the Nassau Rowing Club and the Windsor High School Rowing Team, both coached by Canadian Olympic champions, produced a competitive inaugural Lake Cunningham Classic on Saturday on Lake Cunningham.

#The dual competition was won by Windsor High, coached by Rob Gibson, a 2012 Olympic silver medallist, but the Nassau Rowing Club, coached by Andrea Proske, a two-time World Cup medallist and an Olympic medllist, made it a stiff challenge.

#The event also served as the Nassau RC’s qualifier for the team that will be compete at the CanAmMex in Canada in July.

#Vivian Profitt, the social and events coordinator for the Nassau RC, said while this was the first time they hosted the event, they plan to make it an annual affair.

#“Even though it’s two different clubs, they both train together, but today was a qualifier for the Pan Am in Canada in July,” she said. “So the kids were basically fighting for a spot on the team. It was very exciting.”

#Isiah Ellis, a 14-year-old ninth grader at Windsor in the Junior Men’s Single Sculls in six minutes and 39 seconds. Kenneth Hart was the runner-up in 7:02.

#“I made sure that I had a clean path on the water and I finished strong,” Ellis said. “It was a great experience competing in the first regatta for the Bahamas. It’s a great environment. I love all of the classes. It’s a great school.”

#In the junior women’s doubles sculls, sisters Jessica and Poppy Profitt emerged as the winners in the junior women’s double sculls in 6:43 over the Windsor duo of Anjaleah Knowles and Bianca Johnson, who finished in 8:07.

#“I think we did great. We worked a long time towards it,” said Jessica Profitt, the oldest sister at age 15. “We had some really good coaches in the past couple of weeks, like Olympians and high volume coaches so that really helped us get to where we are.

#“We enjoyed going out and doing our best. We had a lot of fun coming together and competing with each other. It was a like community thing in rowing.”

#Poppy Profitt was just as thrilled about their performance.

#“We really learned a lot from the coaches. In the beginning, we were really enthusiastic, so that really helped,” said Poppy Profitt.

#“I really liked how the Nassau Rowing Club and Windsor Academy came together. I think it really helped us because we can only grow the sport.”

#In the junior women’s single sculls, Crachante Laing, an 18-year-old 11th grader at Windsor High, won the race in 7:09. She was followed by Breanna Gayle in 7.27 with Leah Bethel taking third in 7.39.

#“It was really unexpected because you really didn’t know how it was going to be because it was our first time doing something like this, but it went off very, very smoothly,” Laing said. “For me personally, there was a lot of adrenaline at first. I didn’t know what to expect.

#“These are girls that I don’t normally practice with, so I didn’t know their strokes and how competitive they were, but it was so surreal when I won. If you could have heard me, I was shouting ‘yes, yes’ when I saw the gap I had and I did in fact win.”

#Harrison Schindel and Will Watson combined to capture the junior men’s double scull in 6.05.

#Carl Van Gemerden and Sandor Bianchi got second in 6.30. “We’re great together because we have the actual same height and we both weigh the same and we care a lot about the sport,” said Watson, a 17-year-old ninth grader at Lyford Cay.

#“It was some good competition, very friendly. We all worked together.

#“It was a friendly, good atmosphere.”

#Schindel, born in Canada, has been at Lyford Cay School for the past year and he was pleased to share in the victory.

#“I feel like when we get on the water, we are in our own zone,” Schindel said. “We just go out there and do it all.

#It was an amazing competition, especially seeing my team-mates from the Nassau Rowing Club getting in some competition from the Windsor High. It was really nice.”

#There was also a showdown dubbed the Windsor Junior Men’s Coxed Four versus the Nassau RC Men’s Quadruple Scull that saw the team of Matthew Simms, Sam McCullery, Harry Winchester and Jake Young prevail in 6.12 over Kameron Taylor, Ellery Cartwright, Jamal Hanna and Harper Romer, who finished second in 6.30.

As of Monday, May 16, 2022

• Sign in to favorite this
• DiscussComment, Blog about
• Share thisEmail, Facebook, Twitter

#By RENALDO DORSETT

#Tribune Sports Reporter

#rdorsett@tribunemedia.net

#A RAINY weekend in New Providence held up just long enough for the Bahamas Triathlon Association to crown new champions in the return of its National Championships which served as both a CARIFTA and Commonwealth Games qualifier.

#Armando Moss emerged as the overall men’s champion and simultaneously qualified for the upcoming Commonwealth Games following his standout performance Sunday morning at Jaws Beach.

#Moss, 30, completed the course in 1:06:54 seconds – a 10:17 swim, 30:28 bike, and a 24:30 second run. Jorge Marcos finished second overall at 1:11:19 and Shawn Andrews was third at 1:13.26.

#The Commonwealth Games will be held from July 28 to August 8 in Birmingham, England.

#Carolyn Thompson was the overall women’s champion after she completed the course in 1:19:35. Suzy Eneas was second in 1:20:35 and Sylvia Bateman third in 1:21:37.

#The event featured a sprint distance for the open division – 750m swim, a 20 km bike ride, and a 5km run.

#Additional men’s age group winners included Barron Musgrove Jr (16-19) in 1:26:37, Ralph Wood (20-29) in 1:13:58, Dion Cunningham (30-39) in 1:16:51, Simone Bertoldo (40-49) in 1:14:09, Andrew White (50-59) in 1:18:05, Gerald Walthen (60-69) in 1:21:18 and Ulrich Filser (70- 99) in 1:41:52.

#Women’s age group winners included Kami Roach (16-19) in 1:26:32, Barbara Kiraly (30-39) in 1:27:54, Lynn Pritchard (40-49) in 1:29:49, and Sanchia Fitzmaurice (50-59) in 1:31:54.

#The 13-14 age group competed in a 400m swim, 10km bike, and 2.5km run.

#The 11-12 division featured a 200m swim, 5km bike, and 2km run; the 9-10 division featured a 100m swim, 5km ride, and a 1km run, while the 8U division competed in a 50m swim and 1km bike ride.

#In the 13-14 division, Ayden Bain won the boys’ race in 37:53 while Launy Duncombe was second in 38:12 and Enea Gervasini was third in 39:53. Erin Pritchard won the girls race in 44:16 followed by Anjaléah Knowles in 54.45.

#Lauchlan Menzies took first place in the boys 11-12 in 27:14 followed by Jayden Smith in 27:44 and Sibby Fynn Potter in 28:23.

#Taylor Knowles finished first among girls in 37:59 and Paityn Burrows was second in 40.55.

#Frasier Menzies took the top spot in the boys’ 9-10 in 14:42 followed by Lyall Menzies in 15:03 and Stafford Sweeting in 15:15.

#The 8 and Under division top spot was claimed by Alan Gervasini in 6:11, Jay McCoy was second in 8:10 and Amelia Rolle was first among the girls in 5:55.

#The 2022 CARIFTA Triathlon and Aquathlon Championships are slated for September 23-24 at Clearwater Beach, Southside, Bermuda.

#Headed into the National Championships, there were 21 CARIFTA qualifiers with nine spots outstanding as the association looks to field a 30-member team.

#The CARIFTA age groups are 11-12, 13-15, 16-19, and under-21.

#Team members will be selected using a points system with combined scores from both the Nationals and the Powerade Potcakeman Triathlon in March.

#• Full event results are available at www.raceprompt.com

PHOENIX Suns centre Deandre Ayton (22) looks away after being fouled during the first half of Game 7 of an NBA basketball Western Conference playoff semifinal against the Dallas Mavericks last night. The Suns were eliminated. (AP Photo/Matt York)

As of Monday, May 16, 2022

• Sign in to favorite this
• DiscussComment, Blog about
• Share thisEmail, Facebook, Twitter

#By DAVID BRANDT

#AP Sports Writer

#PHOENIX (AP) — Luka Doncic scored 35 points, Spencer Dinwiddie added 30 and the Dallas Mavericks stunned the top-seeded Phoenix Suns with a 123-90 Game 7 blowout last night, advancing to the Western Conference finals for the first time since 2011.

#Dallas broke through on the road after the home team won the first six games of the series, dominating in a hostile environment from start to finish. Conversely, it was an embarrassing no-show for the playoff-tested Suns — who advanced to the NBA Finals last season with a very similar roster. The fourth-seeded Mavericks travel to face Golden State in Game 1 on Wednesday. Doncic earned the Mavs an early lead, making his first three shots, including two 3-pointers. That helped Dallas push to a 27-17 advantage in the first quarter and a whopping 57-27 cushion at the halftime break.

#Doncic and Dinwiddie, who came off the bench, combined to pour in 48 of the Mavericks’ 57 points.

#Game 7 drama? Not in the desert.

#Simply put, the Suns looked overwhelmed by the pressure of a Game 7. They missed shots they usually make, made bad passes they usually don’t make and looked nothing like the team that won an NBA-best 64 games during the regular season.

#By halftime, many Suns fans were booing at the unsightly display.

#The series might have been close but the individual games usually were not.

#Three of the first six games were decided by at least 20 points and none of the games came down to the final possession.

#Game 7 followed a similar pattern, except the team doing all the damage was the road team. Doncic was fantastic, making shots from all over the floor and finishing 12 of 19 from the field, including 6 of 11 on 3s. He also got some help: Dinwiddie was fantastic in the first half with 21 points on 7-of-10 shooting, including 4 of 5 from 3-point range.

#Meanwhile, Phoenix’s All-Star backcourt of Chris Paul and Devin Booker was never a factor. The 37-year-old Paul is a 12-time All-Star that has done just about everything possible in the game except win a championship.

#After this setback, it’s fair to wonder if there will be many more opportunities. Booker finished with 11 points and shot 3 of 14. Paul had 10 points and four assists. The Suns shot just 37.9% from the field.

#Dallas beat the odds with the win: After the Celtics defeated the Bucks earlier yesterday, the home team was 110-33 (77%) in NBA Game 7s.

#It’s the second straight year the Suns have lost a playoff series after having a 2-0 lead. They won the first two games against the Bucks in the NBA Finals last season before losing four straight games.

#TIP-INS

#Mavericks: Doncic and Dinwiddie were the first teammates to have at least 20 points in a half in Game 7 since Patrick Ewing and Allan Houston did it for the Knicks in 1997, according to ESPN Stats & Info.

#Suns: Phoenix shot just 6 of 23 (26.1%) from the field in the first quarter. … The Suns hosted another sellout crowd at Footprint Center. Celebrities in attendance included baseball great Alex Rodriguez and rapper Lil’ Wayne. The Suns are the second team in NBA history to win at least 64 games in the regular season and not make the conference finals. The other was the Mavericks in 2007.

#Phoenix has still never won a title since coming into the league in 1968.

Sports

Sheldon LongleySend an email4 days ago 692 3 minute readFacebookTwitterLinkedInShare via Email

Not since Raymond Higgs at the 2012 Olympics in London, England, has The Bahamas had someone compete in the men’s long jump at a global meet in athletics.

That is about to change this summer as former St. John’s College standout LaQuan Nairn booked his ticket for the 18th biennial World Athletics (WA) Championships in Eugene, Oregon in the United States (US), qualifying with a massive leap of 8.22 meters (m) – 26’ 11-3/4” – in April.

The qualifying standards for the athletics world championships are a bit more stringent this year as opposed to years past, but Nairn didn’t let that stop him from going out there and doing what he needed to do to ensure he competes in Eugene. He will become the 10th athlete from The Bahamas to compete in the men’s long jump at a senior global meet this summer, joining national record holder Craig Hepburn, Moxey, Higgs, the late Joey Wells, Steve Hanna, Gerald Wisdom, Fletcher Lewis, Lyndon Sands and ‘Superman’ Leevan Sands.

Nairn won the long jump competition at the USA Track & Field (USATF) Golden Games Meet at Hilmer Lodge Stadium in Walnut, California, in April, with that 8.22m effort. He obliterated his previous personal best of 8.04m (26’ 4-1/2”) and catapulted himself into the number two position on The Bahamas’ all-time list, trailing just national record holder Hepburn.

Hepburn remains the only Bahamian to ever soar over 27 feet legally, setting the national record of 8.41m (27’ 7-1/4”) at the Bahamas Association of Athletic Associations’ (BAAA) National Championships in 1993. Nairn is now just a fraction under the 27 feet mark.

Earlier in April, Nairn won the men’s long jump competition at the John McDonnell Invitational in Fayetteville, Arkansas, leaping a wind-aided 8.12m (26’ 7-3/4”). Indoors, he has leapt as far as 8.18m (26’ 10”).

A total of seven Bahamians have now qualified for the world championships in Eugene, Oregon, this summer. They are Shaunae Miller-Uibo in the women’s 200 and 400m, Steven Gardiner in the men’s 400m, Devynne Charlton in the women’s 100m hurdles, Anthonique Strachan in the women’s 100 and 200m, TyNia Gaither also in the women’s 100 and 200m, Samson Colebrooke in the men’s 100m and Nairn in the men’s long jump.

For the first time in 20-plus years, ever since the eighth edition of the world outdoor championships in Edmonton, Canada, that event is headed to this side of the world. Postponed for an entire year due to the threat of the COVID-19 pandemic, the world championships are now set for July 15-24, in Eugene, what is known in the athletics family as Track Town, USA.

The world’s best stars in athletics will gather in Eugene for 10 days this summer to display their talents in the various disciplines at the newly renovated University of Oregon Hayward Field, which has a capacity of 30,000 and has hosted the 2021 National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships and the 2020 US Track and Field Olympic Trials. So far, seven Bahamians will be among them. The event is being organized by USATF with technical assistance from World Athletics officials.

COVID-19 has certainly had its toll on sports in the region, but, like the Olympics of 2021, there has been no word of withdrawal of any of the major athletic powerhouses in the world from the championships.

Apart from the stringent qualifying standards, athletes can also qualify for the world championships by their WA rankings, by wildcard entry (reigning world champion or 2021 Diamond League Champion), or as the current area champion from his or her respective area championships.

The Bahamas has won at least two medals at each of the past three world championships – silver and bronze in 2015 in Beijing, China; silver and bronze again in London, England, in 2017; and gold and silver in Doha, Qatar, in 2019.

Gardiner is the reigning world champion in the men’s 400m from Doha, and Miller-Uibo is the 400m silver medalist.

As mentioned, this is the first time the world championships are being held in the western hemisphere since the 2001 edition in Edmonton, Canada. Coincidentally, that was also the year The Bahamas had its biggest medal haul – three gold and a bronze for a total of four. On two other occasions, The Bahamas won three medals at a single world championships and two medals on three other occasions.

In the history of the meet, The Bahamas has won 25 total medals – eight gold, nine silver and eight bronze.

Simba FrenchSend an email14 hours ago 189 3 minute readFacebookTwitterLinkedInShare via Email

After a night of torrential downpour, rowers experienced good conditions on Saturday morning as the Nassau Rowing Club (NRC) and the Windsor Rowing Club faced each other at the Lake Cunningham Classic on Lake Cunningham.

In the five-race regatta, rowers competed on a 1,500 meters (m) course. It was the first time that both clubs went head-to-head, showcasing their best athletes.

Head Coach of NRC and Tokyo 2020 Olympic gold medalist Andrea Proske said she liked what she saw on the water form the rowers.

“I saw a lot of great intensity. A lot of these kids do not get the opportunity to do any races because we are living on a small island. To have them show up and race their hearts out has been exciting. Both Rob (Gibson) and I are from Canada and we are Olympians, so we are bringing our high performance mentality to The Bahamas and they have risen to the occasion,” Proske said.

Head Coach of Windsor Rowing, Olympic medalist Rob Gibson said that he and Proske decided to give the local rowers an opportunity to compete on the waters at home.

“I saw a lot of sportsmanlike conduct and a lot of tight racing,” Gibson said. “There was a lot of desire to win. Rowing is a very demanding sport where athletes spend hours of physical training on land and lake. It is not easy. They have been working hard all year and this was their first race on the water. This was a great step for the kids to race in front of their family and friends.”

Picking up the first win of the day at 8 a.m. was Isaiah Ellis from Windsor in the junior men’s single sculls. He clocked 6:39 to win that race. Finishing second was NRC’s Kenneth Hart who crossed the finish line in 7:02.

“It was a long race,” 14-year-old Ellis said. “I stayed with long strokes and made sure my blades were cleaning the water and I finished strong. I am happy with my progress.”

NRC’s Jessie and Poppy Proffitt, sisters, were brilliant in the junior women’s double sculls, building up a sizable lead on their competitors, and cruising to the finish. The sisters clocked 6:43 to win that race. Their closest competitor to them were Winsdor’s Anjaleah Knowles and Bianca Johnson, who clocked 8:07.

“It was a pretty good race. We went into the race very optimistic and I think that is what helped us. We have been working hard toward it. We had some very good coaches helping us over the past week. It was a great opportunity,” Jessie Proffitt said.

Poppy Proffitt said, “I felt it was quite stressful but I liked it because it was fun that both teams from NRC and Windsor came together. It feels that we are actually combining and becoming a true community. We were enthusiastic in our boats.”

Windsor crossed the finish line first in the quadruple sculls against NRC’s men. The Windsor team of Matthias Simms, Sam McCullen, Harry Winchester and Jake Young clocked 6:12. Ethan Mui coxed the team. The NRC team was represented by Kameron Taylor, Ellery Cartwright, Jamal Hanna and Harper Romer and they crossed the finish line in 6:27. The team was coxed was Tasneem Karabas.

It was Windsor’s Crachante Laing coming up big to win the junior women’s single sculls in a time of 7:09. Placing second was NRC’s Breanna Gayle, who crossed the finish line in 7:27. Gayle’s teammate Leah Bethel was third with a time of 7:39.

Laing uses the ergometers at her school, so she ended up breaking the course up in three parts.

“I’m barely on the water, so I do not get as much practice as I’d like to. At first, I said the course is long, so I broke it down into three 500m races. I was talking to myself when I crossed the first 500m, then the second one until I crossed the finish line. I just translated what I do off the water to on the water,” Laing said.

Winning the final race of the day was NRC’s Harrison Schindel and Will Watson in the junior boys double sculls. They finished the race in 6:05. Finishing second was Windsor’s Carl Van Gemerden and Sandor Bianchi, who rowed 6:30.

Both coaches are hoping to see the event on the calendar every year. They are also hoping to have some international opportunities this summer.

Bahamians take to the track in Doha; Miller-Uibo, Charlton and Strachan to compete

Simba FrenchSend an email4 days ago 570 2 minute readFacebookTwitterLinkedInShare via Email

Bahamian track and field athletes Shaunae Miller-Uibo, Devynne Charlton and Anthonique Strachan will kick off their 2022 Wanda Diamond League competition today, taking part in the Doha Diamond League competition at the Qatar Sports Club in Doha, Qatar.

Miller-Uibo will be running in the 400 meters (m), Charlton will compete in the 100m hurdles and Strachan will run in the 200m. All three women ran in the World Athletics Indoor Championships in March with Miller-Uibo winning the gold medal in the 400m, Charlton winning silver medal in the 60m hurdles and Strachan reaching the semifinals of the 60m dash.

Strachan, who is arguably in the best shape of her career, is coming off a season’s best time of 22.55 seconds in the 200m in Kingston, Jamaica, last weekend – her best time in eight years in that event. Earlier in the season, she ran a personal best of 10.99 seconds in the 100m – becoming just the seventh Bahamian in history to ever run under 11 seconds in the women’s 100m. Strachan was a guest on Guardian Radio’s ‘Talking Heads with Naughty’ on Wednesday and spoke about her performance over the weekend.

“I feel good overall. I am extremely confident in myself, and I want to see what I would be able to do in a big field,” Strachan said.

The Maximising Velocity and Power (MVP) Track and Field Club athlete will be running in a star-studded field today that will feature 2020 Olympic bronze medalist American Gabrielle Thomas. Also in that race is Strachan’s MVP teammate Jamaican Shericka Jackson, American Tamara Clark and Great Britain’s Dina Asher-Smith.

The women’s 200m is scheduled for 1:36 p.m. local time today, 6:36 a.m. in The Bahamas.

Miller-Uibo, the 2020 Tokyo Olympics 400m gold medalist, will hit the track to run her second 400m outdoor race this season after running 49.91 seconds in Clermont, Florida, last month. She enters the race as the favorite to win it. She will go up against 2020 Olympic 400m silver medalist Marileidy Paulino of the Dominican Republic. Also in the field are Jamaicans Stephenie Ann McPherson and Candice McLeod – the fourth and fifth place finishers from Tokyo, Japan, respectively.

That race is scheduled for 12:04 p.m. local time – 5:04 a.m. in The Bahamas.

Charlton ran two 100m hurdles races for the season with her season’s best of 12.89 seconds coming in April in Lexington, Kentucky. The national record holder in that event will line up against the 2020 Olympics 100m hurdles silver medalist American Kendra Harrison. Jamaicans Britany Anderson and 2020 Olympics bronze medalist Megan Tapper will also be in that race.

They will take to the track at 1:02 p.m. – 6:02 a.m. (ET) in The Bahamas.

The Wanda Diamond League is a season long competition that features the world’s top track and field athletes vying to become Diamond League Champions.

After this meet is over, athletes will head to Birmingham, England, on May 21, where the Commonwealth Games will be held, for the second meet on the Diamond League calendar. This year, athletes will compete on the Diamond League circuit in cities such as Eugene, Oregon; Rabat, Morocco; Paris, France; Lausanne, Switzerland; Brussels, Belgium; and Zurich, Switzerland just to name a few. The season wraps up September 7-8 in Zurich.