Jamaica challenged by USA on sprint dominance
A United States/Caribbean battle for track and field supremacy may be in the works for 2009 after the US issued an open challenge to Jamaica on Saturday (Mar 7), asking for a “head-to-head, team-scored competition” between the sprinting giants.
The letter was hand-delivered by United States of America Track and Field Chief Executive Officer Doug Logan to NACAC President Neville ‘Teddy’ McCook at the NACAC Cross Country Championships held in Titusville, Florida over the weekend.
Logan stated in the letter that it was “obvious to everyone that with the rise of your country’s great sprinters and hurdlers, a compelling rivalry between Jamaica and the United States had developed” and the promotion of such a rivalry would boost the profile of track and field in non-Olympic years.
“It is rivalries and head-to-head competition that will do the most to increase the popularity of track and field around the world. And of course, our sprinters are not ready to concede Jamaican dominance,” Logan stated.
If the competition was to be held, a meet would be convened and televised in both the US and Jamaica in May or June, and would feature male and female athletes in the “100, 200 and 400 meters; 100/110m hurdles and 400m hurdles; long jump; and Jamaica’s ascent to being the world’s leading sprinting power was solidified at the 2008 Beijing Olympics as Usain Bolt (100m, 200m, 4x100m), Shelly-Ann Fraser (100m), Melaine Walker (400m Hurdles), Veronica Campbell-Brown (400m), Michael Frater (4x100m), Nesta Carter (4x100m) and Asafa Powell (4x100m) all brought home gold medals for their country. the 4×100, 4×400 and sprint medley relays”.
While it is obvious that athletes like Usain Bolt, Asafa Powell and Veronica Campbell-Brown have firmly placed Jamaica at the head of the world athletics pack, Logan was quick to recall past US dominance in his letter.
“Let us not forget that less than two years ago, it was the United States on top of three of the four short sprints and both sprint relays at the 2007 World Championships (in Osaka, Japan).”
Jamaica has yet to confirm whether or not it would accept the challenge from the US, but Jamaica Amateur Athletics President Howard Aris said that such an event would likely yield great benefits for both countries and the sport in general.
“We can’t answer definitively… (but) clearly we would have an interest in competing in anything that would further the development of track and field in Jamaica.
“However until we get an official request from US Track and Field outlining the events, the time of year, the budget, sponsorship and all of the implications, all we can say is that we have an interest in hearing what they have to say,” he told The Jamaica Observer.
