A number of Caribbean athletes appear poised for medal contention at the World Athletics Championships Budapest 23, outside of the usual array of Jamaican hopefuls.
Jamaica is ranked fifth on the all-time medals table for the World Athletics Championships after 40 years, behind the United States, Kenya, Russia and Germany.
The Caribbean powerhouse has racked up 137 medals, including 37 gold, 56 silver and 44 bronze medals, and like their last few editions, double digit hauls are expected yet again.
But the Caribbean is more than Jamaica, and there are other nations with athletes who are poised to shake things up and challenge for gold or at the least be on the podium.
You can find LIVE RESULTS from Caribbean Athletes during World Athletics Championship in Budapest 2023 here.
Other Caribbean Athletes To Watch In Budapest
Steven Gardiner of the Bahamas is one of the favorites for the men’s 400m. The lanky athlete won gold at the 2019 Doha World Athletics Championships, and repeated victory at the 2012 Tokyo Olympics before injury robbed him of a chance to three-peat at the 2022 edition of the World Champs in Eugene, Oregon.
His 43.74 seconds at the distance this season makes him a prime contender to regain the winner’s medal.
His countryman Terrence Jones from Texas Tech has been outstanding on the collegiate circuit this season. The 100m and 200m sprinter ran 9.91 seconds to equal his National Record held by Derrick Atkinson from the Osaka, Japan World Championships in 2007. He has a personal best of 19.87 seconds in the 200m, and if he recovers sufficiently from the fatigue of the arduous collegiate season, then he has shown enough already to stake a claim for a place in the finals of both events.
Anderson Peters of Grenada is hunting an unprecedented third consecutive World Championships gold medal in the men’s javelin. He is currently ranked in sixth position with an 85.88m, but he knows what it takes to win and as such ought to be respected.
His compatriot Kirani James is equally classy and a champion in the 400m. He is one of the few athletes to have won at both the junior and senior levels.
The former Olympics and World Champion has battled grave’s disease for a few seasons but returned to win bronze at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics and silver at the Oregon World Championships and having been extremely consistent when fit, he must be a danger to all.
Dominican Republic’s Marileidy Paulino is double World Championships and Olympics silver medallist in the women’s 400m. She enters the event in Budapest as a clear medal contender after a stellar season in which she has run a National Record 48.98 seconds.
Then there is St Lucia’s Julian Alfred who has scorched the track with consistency over the last few years at the senior level. She has a personal best of 10.81 seconds over 100m and 21.91 seconds over 200m.
She is a rising star who ought to be watched closely.
Others worth keeping an eye on are Sada Williams of Barbados in the women’s 400m; Keshorn Walcott of Trinidad and Tobago in the men’s javelin; Keyshawn Strachan of the Bahamas in the men’s javelin; Jereem Richards of Trinidad and Tobago in the 200m and 400m; and Michael Joseph of St Lucia in the 400m.
What Are The World Athletics Championships?
The World Athletics Championships, a biennial athletics competition organized by world governing body, World Athletics, is slated for the National Athletics Centre in Budapest. It starts on Saturday and ends on Sunday, August 27. You can view the full World Athletics Championships schedule converted to local US times here.
It differs from the Olympic Games, which is organized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and is an international sports festival held every four years. The Paris 2024 Olympic Games will have 32 sporting disciplines being contested.
The World Athletics Championships offers monetary awards, but the IOC prohibits any form of payment to athletes for their participation in the Olympic Games. The IOC’s mission is to promote the Olympic values of excellence, friendship, and respect, and they believe that the spirit of the Games should not be tainted by financial incentives.
Instead of prize money, athletes who win medals in the Olympics receive recognition, respect, and admiration from their home countries and around the world. Winning an Olympic medal is a great honor and accomplishment and athletes are motivated by the desire to represent their countries and achieve personal excellence.
However, some countries do provide financial rewards to their Olympic medallists.
The World Athletics Championships will be televised globally. For those in the US, it will be available across a range of networks. Peacock TV, CNBC, NBC, and USA Network have teamed up to present an incredible nine-day marathon of continuous track and field action in the US.
