Jamaican athletes chase history in inaugural Ultimate Championships

A number of Jamaica’s top track and field athletes will be among some of the world’s best seeking to make history when the inaugural World Athletics Ultimate Championships gets underway at the National Athletics Center in Budapest, Hungary. Jamaica’s mixed 4x100m team, which is the world record holder and also champion from the World Athletics Relays, as well as 10 athletes in four individual events, are scheduled to compete on the first day of the three-day event, which World Athletics is hoping will help to spark a revival in the sport globally. In addition to the mixed 4x100m, Jamaicans will be involved in the sprint hurdles, both of which will feature semi-finals and finals today. Jamaicans are also set to contest the women’s 400m semi-finals and the women’s high jump final.

In the individual track events, there will be two semi-finals, with the first four in each race qualifying for the final. In addition to the biggest cash prizes ever offered in the sport — US$150,000 to the winners of each event and US$80,000 to the winning relay teams — World Athletics has included a number of new initiatives with the aim of making the sport more attractive. Demario Prince (Photo: Garfield Robinson) The final of the mixed 4x100m relays will open the championships. The Jamaicans broke the global record twice at the World Relays in March , running 39. 62 in the final after being the first team to go under the 40-second barrier with 39. 99 in the first round. Great Britain and Canada, who held the world record at some points in the last 18 months, and the United States are Jamaica’s main rivals. Four Jamaicans are to contest the 100m hurdles. Ackera Nugent and Megan Simmonds are set to go in the first semi-finals where they will face off against world record holder Masai Russell of…