Philadelphia Tribune - Index

Philadelphia Tribune - Penn relay Supplement - Friday, April 24, 2009 - Index

Friday, April 24, 2009 Philadelphia Tribune
Page 9
Jamaica, U.S. emerge
as strong rivals
Since Olympics, creating some natural rivalries way key
Donald Hunt
Tribune Staff Writer
The Penn Relays has produced
a number of great attractions
over the years. The
biggest attraction in recent
years has been U.S.A. vs. The
World competition that features
some outstanding relays.
The big thing with this competition
has been the rivalry,
which has developed between
U.S.A. and Jamaica. A year
ago, Team Jamaica won two of
the first three relays. The
American came back to capture
the final two events.
These great athletes performed
in front of 49,831 fans
on Saturday afternoon at
Franklin Field.
Doug Logan, CEO of U.S.A.
Track and Field, feels Penn
Relays has established a good
foundation for this rivalry.
Logan would like to see a dual
meet between U.S.A. and Jamaica
down the road.
“The Penn Relays have a
great deal of history,” Logan
said. “They have a great legacy.
I remember going to my
first Penn Relays in 1962.
That’s how far back I go. Since
the Olympics, we wanted to
create some natural rivalries.
We wanted to figure out how
we can take this rivalry to another
level. We would like to
have a meet down in Kingston
and one here. We would have
a limited number of technical
events like the throws and
jumps. We would also have
the sprints and sprint relays.”
The rivalry is certainly special.
You can see it with the
fans as well as the athletes.
Last year, Jamaica won the
sprint medley relay. Kerron
Stewart and Aleen Bailey both
ran 200 meter legs, with Bailey
taking the lead over Team
USA and the Caribbean All-
Stars. Sonita Sutherland ran
a quick 400, leading the All-
The featured event in recent years at The Penn Relays has been the rivalry, which has developed between U.S.A. and Jamaica.
A year ago, Team Jamaica won two of the first three relays.
Stars and USA, which trailed,
by seven meters. Kenia Sinclair
then opened it up on the
final, 800 meter leg, crossing
the finish in second in
3:39.16, with the USA Red
Team featuring Ebonie Floyd,
Hasani Roseby, Tiffany Ross
Willaims and Hazel Clark
third in 3:41.08.
Team U.S.A. bounced back
in the 4x100 meter relay winning
impressively with Lauryn
Williams, Miki Barber, Lisa
Barber and Allyson Felix with
a time of 42.57. Jamaica
placed third in this race behind
the U.S.A. Blue team
with Muna Lee, Torri Edwards,
Carmelita Jeter and
Sanya Richards.
The most exciting race was
the men’s 4x100-meter relay.
The Jamaican team of Marvin
Anderson, Michael Frater,
Nesta Carter and Dwight
Thomas won this event with a
time of 39.03. They topped
Team USA Blue with John
Capel, Xavier Carter, Michael
Rodgers and Shawn Crawford.
Trinidad placed third, with
Team USA Red finishing
fourth with Leroy Dixon, Wallace
Spearmon, Darvis Patton
and Tyson Gay.
The pro athletes have been
very competitive in this event.
But Jamaica has been nothing
short of fantastic at the Penn
Relays. Alwayne Green from
Manchester High in Jamaica
won the Most Outstanding
Athlete For the Relays. Green
led his team in the 4x800meter
relay last year.
Kingston’s Calabar High won
the High School Boys Champi-
onship of America in the
4x100-meter relay.
“There’s a wonderful rivalry
that exists and hopefully exists
for a long time to come at
Penn not only on the pro side,
but the high school side, too,”
Logan said. “The Jamaican
high school teams have been
expressing themselves very
well the last few years. It’s a
wonderful thing and we don’t
want to diminish that. It’s an
integral part of the U.S.A.-
World side of what the Penn
Relays have been.”