KINGSTON, Jamaica — Heat four of the women’s 100m at the 2021 Jamaica Olympic trials at the National Stadium in Kingston, is expected to provide the most highlight, as it featured four of the country’s top young prospects. Briana Williams, Kemba Nelson, Kevona Davis, and Kasheika Cameron will all lineup in the same preliminary heat on Thursday’s first day of competition.
Williams, the national junior record holder, and Nelson, the NCAA Indoor 60m champion while representing the University of Oregon, have both recorded sub-11 seconds personal bests this season, and the two sprinters will be hoping to transfer that form into the trials.
Williams, the World U20 sprint double champion, owns a personal best of 10.97 seconds (1.2m/s), achieved at the 2021 NACAC New Life Invitational in Miramar, Florida, earlier this month, and she also has a wind-legal time of 10.98 (1.0m/s) at the American Track League Duval Challenge in Jacksonville, FL, this month as well.
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The 19-year-old has two other wind-aided sub-11 clockings of 10.97 (2.5m/s) and 10.93 (3.6m/s).
Nelson, meanwhile, takes a personal best of 10.98s from the NCAA Preliminary West Round in College Station, Texas, into the trials this week, and she’s also clocked wind-assisted times of 10.91 (2.1m/s) and 10.90 (2.2m/s) this year.
The Oregon standout finished fourth at the 2021 NCAA Outdoor Championships a couple of weeks ago.
Meanwhile, Davis, who qualified for the finals of the women’s 200m and ran a PB in that event at the NCAA Championships while representing the University of Texas, will start from lane six in the same heat where she’ll be hoping to progress to the semi-finals.
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Another athlete to look out for in the fourth heat is Kasheika Cameron, who will be hoping to build on her personal best of 11.24s, done this season at the TRUFit Athletics Sprint Classic in Miami, FL, in April. Cameron, who trains at the M.V.P Track Club under the guidance of legendary coach Stephen Francis, will start in lane 3.
Elsewhere, two-time Olympic champion and current world leader at 10.63s, Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce will start in the first heat against young star Ashanti Moore, while sprint double champion Elaine Thompson-Herah is set to start in heat two against Natalliah Whyte and Olympic bronze medalist over 400m Shericka Jackson in heat three.
Natasha Morrison, another sub-11 seconds Jamaican sprinter this season, will lineup against Jackson, who has a PB of 11.02s from this season.
