PHILADELPHIA, USA : High expectations as 122nd Penn Relays Carnival begins today...Over 50 Jamaican high schools and college teams will be competing....Huge interest expected from newly crowned national junior record holder SHANICE LOVE of XLCR High who is a PALAS recipient

BY PAUL A REID Observer writer reidp@jamaicaobserver.com  Thursday, April 28, 2016   

Action from last year’s Penn Relays Carnival at Franklin Field
 in Philadelphia. (Photo: Jose Lara Aragon)

PHILADELPHIA, USA — Expectations will be high among the over 50 Jamaican high schools and college teams as the 122nd staging of the Penn Relays Carnival gets under way at Franklin Field in Philadelphia in what is expected to be wet and cold conditions today.

The bar has been set high as last year Jamaican high schools swept all six Championships of Americas relays they contested, with Edwin Allen girls and Calabar boys winning two each, the respective 4x100m and 4x400m; Holmwood Technical won the girls’ 4x800m, while St Elizabeth Technical High School (STETHS) won the boys’ title.

Added to that Jamaican high schools won an additional six individual titles and hopes are that they will at least match the total number of wins this year.

Today the girls will open the competition with the heats of all three relays, as well as competition in the 400m hurdles; long, triple and high jumps; shot put, discus throw and javelin. College women will also be in action in the heats of the 4x400m relays, shot put, discus throw and shot put events.

It will be the high schoolgirls who will be in the spotlight on today’s first full day of competition, where the teams will compete for places in the finals of the relays set for tomorrow afternoon.

Shanice Love, PALAS recipient of XLCR

Holmwood Technical will have a brand new team from the one that won the 4x800m relay last year, and this year’s group will seek to extend their school’s dominance in the event they have made their own here.

Vere Technical, Spalding High, Hydel and Edwin Allen are also down for the event.

Edwin Allen will start favourites in the 4x100m, while STETHS and Holmwood will challenge them in the 4x400m.

There will also be serious interest in the throwing events to be held at the newly refurbished throwing complex with newly crowned national junior record holder Shanice Love hoping to go one better than last year when she was second to Paulann Gayle of Edwin Allen High. more