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James should be AAG nominee for Junior Sportsman
For his international consistency and for producing two of the fastest times from a junior athlete living
Stephan James
and training in Guyana, Stephan James should be a clear nominee and front-runner for the National Sports Commission Junior Sportsman of the Year Award.
It must be made known that there has been no formal release on the status of the Annual Awards, but assessing the standout performances of 2011 in athletics, surely brings James to the for as an athlete who undoubtedly gave Guyana an international chance.
As I wrote last July, James became our version of King James with outstanding performances on the international circuit. The junior athlete withstood financial constraints and recorded a speedy 47.27 seconds in the semi-final of the Pan American Junior Championships in Florida.
For the record, James time placed him in the final of the competition, giving Guyana another first at such a prestigious event. He placed sixth in the final with 48.37 following obvious exhaustions later in the night after his semi-final run in the morning. James placing, however, meant that he is ranked sixth in the Pan American region among junior quarter-milers.
But before competing at the Ansin Sports Complex in Florida, James had reached the final of the 400m at the 2011 Junior CARIFTA Games in Jamaica. His fastest time at that meet was 48.18 at the highest level for Caribbean athletes. James continued his ascendancy when he helped Guyana recover the Inter-Guiana Games overall title in the latter part of last year.
Then, Guyana’s lone participant at the South American Junior Track and Field Championships in Colombia, James brought home a bronze medal after the Running Brave Track Club athlete ran a steamy 47.79 seconds for third place in the final of yet another major meet.
It meant that of the three major meets James competed in last year, he made the final of all with a medal in one, which was in South America. There is absolutely no doubt that Guyana found one of the most talented athletes in the history of the sport when James was discovered.
With such performances, James should definitely be the Athletics Association of Guyana (AAG) nominee for Junior Sportsman. The association will find a more difficult time finding its aspirant for Junior Sportswoman since names such as Jevina Sampson and Letitia Myles are close runners for the association’s nomination.
In the senior Sportsman and Sportswoman categories, Winston George, for being a locally-based athlete who qualified for the London Olympics, and Aliann Pompey, for single-handedly keeping the Golden Arrowhead flying internationally, should be the nominees. (Edison Jefford)
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