GAMES

With tears rolling down her cheeks, Kelly-Ann Baptiste lamented her cruel fate.

For the third time in as many Olympic Games, a baton bungle ended Trinidad and Tobago's women's 4x100 metres campaign. On each occasion, Baptiste was part of the team.

"I can't explain it," she told the Express. "It's hard, because we all trained really good and wanted to come out here and have a good performance. To feel like you've done all you could in practice, and to train so hard and to come up short is just disappointing."

Michelle-Lee Ahye ran the leadoff leg for T&T in yesterday's final, at the Olympic Stadium, here in London, England. At the changeover, Baptiste reached for the baton, and reached again, but the exchange was never completed, and the country's hopes of a first-ever Olympic medal in a women's event were dashed.

"I don't have anything to say," said Baptiste. "We didn't make the handoff. I really couldn't tell you (what went wrong). I just didn't get the stick. "I can't question God," she continued, "so I'm just going to keep my head up and keep pushing."

Third leg runner Kai Selvon and anchorwoman Semoy Hackett watched on in agony, powerless to change T&T's fate.

United States struck gold, obliterating the world record in the process. Tianna Madison, 200m gold medallist Allyson Felix, Bianca Knight and Carmelita Jeter got the baton round the track in a jaw-dropping 40.82 seconds, slicing more than half a second off the 41.37 standard, established way back in 1985 by East Germany.

Jamaica picked up silver in a national record time of 41.41 seconds, while bronze went to Ukraine in 42.04—also a new national standard.

At four o'clock this afternoon (T&T time), Richard Thompson, Marc Burns, Emmanuel Callender and Keston Bledman will bid for honours in the men's 4x100m final.

In the qualifying round, yesterday, the T&T quartet finished third in heat two in 38.10 seconds to secure an automatic berth in the championship race. United States produced a new national record, 37.38 seconds, to win the race, beating Japan (38.07) into second spot. Jamaica topped heat one in 37.39 seconds.

Thompson ran the leadoff leg for T&T, yesterday, handing the baton to Burns. Callender had third leg responsibilities, and Bledman anchored. The same quartet earned silver for T&T at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Four years ago, however, Bledman led off and Thompson anchored.

"We all have faith in the leg that we're running," Thompson told the Express, "and we believe this is the best order for us to win a medal. We know our chances are strong, so we just have to execute properly. I feel like the execution could have been a little better , so as long as everything is cleaned up tomorrow (today), there's no doubt in my mind that we could win a medal.

"With a relay, anything can go wrong, anything is possible, so it was just about getting the stick around. We thank God we were able to do that, and have a berth into the final."

Burns said he is pleased to be in the medal race.

"We made it to the next round, and that's all that matters. Each of us know what's at stake and the adjustments we need to make for the final. But we'll be okay."

Callender is confident of earning a second Olympic sprint relay medal.

"One hundred per cent. In all things, just having faith in God, anything is possible."

Bledman had some work to do on the home straight, yesterday, to ensure T&T claimed one of the three automatic qualifying berths up for grabs in heat two. "This is the first time we ever tried this order, but we trust in the team and trust in God. Tomorrow (today) is a different day. We're going to go out even tougher."

T&T have been drawn way out in lane nine for today's championship race. Defending champions Jamaica will run in lane six, next to United States, in seven.

Keshorn Walcott will be at the Olympic Stadium today, for the 2.20 p.m. (T&T time) men's javelin final. When he takes his first throw in the competition, the 19-year-old will become the first male field athlete from T&T to compete in an Olympic final.

By Kwame Laurence

Source: www.trinidadexpress.com

For the first time in 20 years, Trinidad and Tobago will compete in an Olympic Games 4x400 metres final. But the four men expected to represent the Red, White and Black in today's 4.20 p.m. (T&T time) championship race are not satisfied with mere participation.

In fact, Ade Alleyne-Forte believes that the Americans–gold medallists in the event 16 times–can be beaten.

"They're most definitely vulnerable. We're like sharks in the water. We're smelling the blood and we're trying to go get it, trying to get our food. We need to eat too."

At the Olympic Stadium, yesterday, men's 400m bronze medallist Lalonde Gordon, Jarrin Solomon, Alleyne-Forte and 19-year-old Deon Lendore, running in that order, combined for victory in the first qualifying heat in three minutes, 00.38 seconds–a new national record.

"I'm happy we came out on top," said Gordon. "Looking forward to the final."

After a good start from Gordon, Solomon continued the fine work, earning T&T a five-metre lead halfway through the race. But Alleyne-Forte, who came into the team as a replacement for the injured Renny Quow, found the going tough, slipping to third. T&T were still third when anchorman Lendore came off the final turn, but he produced a strong run on the home straight, leaning at the line to hand his team victory by the narrowest of margins.

Lendore, who bowed out of the individual 400m event in the opening round after finishing fifth in his heat in 45.81 seconds last Saturday, produced an impressive 44.49 seconds split in yesterday's relay.

"From the open four, I saw I wasn't really in the shape I thought I would have been in, so I came out in the relay to try to measure myself, so I'll go into the final a little more confident. I didn't get the first part of the race, so I had a lot to do coming home. I didn't want to come in two or three. I wanted the first place in order to get a good lane, so it could be better for us when we go into the final."

T&T will start in lane four in today's medal race. Great Britain finished second to T&T in yesterday's opening heat, also in 3:00.38, while Cuba clocked 3:00.55 to earn the third automatic qualifying berth up for grabs.

South Africa's second leg runner, Ofentse Mogawane, fell during the race, and his team did not finish. However, it was determined that Kenyan Vincent Mumo Kiilu had cut across Mogawane. The Kenyans were disqualified, while the South Africans were given a spot in the final by the jury of appeal. Solomon was superb on the second leg for T&T, combining with Gordon to lay a solid foundation for the record run.

"I'm feeling really good," Solomon told the Express. "My body's in the best shape of my life."

The second heat was also a close contest. Bahamas won in 2:58.87, the same time clocked by second-placed United States.

But though no T&T team has ever run under three minutes, Solomon is certain T&T will be in the hunt for gold.

"We ain't really care about time. We just want to get the medal, so as fast as it takes to get that gold medal, that is what we're going to do."

Lendore is also determined to climb the podium. "I'm inspired by Lalonde. He inspired the whole team to try and get a medal too."

At 2.53 this afternoon (T&T time), T&T will bid for a men's 4x100m championship race lane. The track and field team manager, here in London, Dexter Voisin, said that Richard "Torpedo" Thompson will run the leadoff leg, handing off to Marc Burns. Emmanuel Callender performs third leg duties, while the anchor leg responsibility is Keston Bledman's.

T&T will run in lane four in the second of two heats, next to France, in five. United States have been drawn in lane seven.

Heat one will feature reigning Olympic champions, Jamaica.

At the 2008 Beijing Games, Jamaica won in a then world record time of 37.10 seconds, while T&T clocked 38.06 to earn silver.

Source: www.trinidadexpress.com

DEXTER VOISIN, manager of the Trinidad and Tobago team at the 2012 Olympic Games in London, England, stated his delight in the performances of the national athletes, in track and field as well as the other sporting disciplines.

In an interview from London on Tuesday, Voisin said, “we can safely say so far we are having one of the better Olympics in terms of the amount of finals that we are in.

“And not just track and field but the whole Trinidad and Tobago team,” he added. “Njisane Phillip (and) George Bovell reaching semi-finals (respectively in cycling and, in Bovell’s case, 50m freestyle final).

Voisin continued, “but if you focus on track and field, so far we had five finalists (up until Tuesday) and one bronze medal. That is a very good achievement so far.

“We have a couple of events to go, as recently as Semoy Hackett who made it to the 200-metre final, for the women,” he continued. “That’s a first, for a female, making it to the 200m final.

“The track and field team, we have been having some good performances. I’m not going to make any predictions. The first objective is to get to the finals.”

Looking at the opposition in the track and field arena, Voisin commented, “the competition, so far, in the Olympics has been very high, seven men in the 100m final going under ten seconds for the first time.

“The women 100m final was the fastest final ever. The competition is very high and our athletes are doing well so far. Some of the athletes have confessed they could have done much better. From my standpoint, we are doing well.”

He spoke briefly on men’s 400m bronze medallist Lalonde Gordon, who rose from obscurity to claim a medal in Monday’s Final. Voisin acknowledged Gordon’s low profile, stating, “everyone in the world is asking (who is Gordon), even in Trinidad.

“Coming into the Olympic Games, he was an unknown. Basically what he did was shock the whole world.”

Source: www.newsday.co.tt