Carifta Games: Coach Riley expects quality performances

Jamaica’s head coach David Riley is confident his team will have a good showing at the 2024 Carifta Games which begins today in Grenada. Riley will lead a 79-member squad as Jamaica seeks to claim its 38th straight Carifta title.

Riley said the team is confident heading into the Carifta Games as each athlete is aiming to return with a medal.

For several members of the team, the Carifta Games will prove to be a chance for redemption after missing out on a medal at the recently concluded ISSA GraceKennedy Boys and Girls Athletics Championships (Champs).

“The Jamaican athletes going to Carifta are extremely confident about their quality and the fact that they can come back with a medal. No Jamaican athlete wants to go to Carifta and not return with a medal.

“In fact, there are many on the team who may not have earned a medal at Champs and their aim is to earn a medal at Carifta. So we’re looking forward to the athletes adjusting well and going out there and do what they know and what the Jamaica fans will want them to do,” Riley said.

Champs fatigue is no concern

With Champs ending just a week before the start of the Carifta Games, there were concerns that the athletes would be fatigued heading into the regional meet.

However, Riley rubbished those worries. He said athletes had been made aware of the timing of both events months in advance and are prepared for both championships.

He explained that each athlete is under the guidance of their personal coaches and will be ready to perform at their best at the Carifta Games.

“While we might have had an intense five days of championships, some of the athletes did only one event or they might not have had much work depending on the specific athlete. The athletes are still under the guidance of their personal coaches and those are the ones who decide how much workload the athletes will do at Carifta.

“In addition, everybody had been made aware of the closeness between the Carifta Games and Champs so the athletes should be prepared to be able to deal with the workload in the two competitions and still give very good performances,” Riley added.

Jamaica have a numerical advantage over their Caribbean opponents, as the country generally has a larger team compared to their rivals, with each athlete capable of leaving with a medal come Monday.

Riley is focusing on the performance of each athlete rather than the team’s overall medal tally.

He believes once each athlete is able to perform at their best, then the team as a whole will benefit.

“The emphasis is on each athlete to go out there and give their best efforts and if we achieve that then the overall team performance will follow. It’s an individual sport and it requires the individuals to go out there and perform and we do have a rounded team. We have the largest team in the competition so traditionally we earn the most medals, not just because of our size but also because of the quality of the athletes that we bring,” the Jamaica head coach said.

A number of finals are scheduled for today. In the morning session which starts at 8:03 a.m. (Ja time) there will be the high jump for under-17 girls, javelin throw under-17 boys and shot put under-17 girls finals.

The finals in the afternoon session include discus under-20 boys, under-20 girls’ triple jump, pole vault open, 1500m for under-17 girls, under-17 boys, under-20 girls and under-20 boys. These events will be followed by long jump under-20 boys, discus under-20 girls, 400m for all four age groups and 100m for all four age groups.