Taejha Badal finished fifth in the Championship girls’ 200 metres final at the Adidas Indoor Track and Field High School National Championships in Virginia, USA, last Saturday.

Badal got to the line in a personal best 23.91 seconds.

She had produced her previous best in the qualifying round, the Tomball High school student getting home in 24.05 to advance third fastest.

Badal was also on show in the Championship girls’ 60m dash. The 17-year-old Trinidad and Tobago athlete got to the line in 7.63 seconds in the semifinal round to finish 10th overall. The eight fastest sprinters progressed to the final. Badal had clocked 7.57 in the opening round.

T&T athletes were also on show at outdoor meets last weekend.

At the Jamaica Athletics Administrative Association (JAAA) Qualification Trials meet, held at the National Stadium in Kingston, 36-year-old sprinter Emmanuel Callender finished fourth in section six and fifth overall in the men’s 100m event. The 2008 Olympic 4x100m gold medallist clocked 10.76 seconds, into a strong 3.8 metres per second headwind.

At the Trials of Miles meet, in Texas, USA, Dawnel Collymore returned a time of two minutes, 12.86 seconds to finish fifth in her section. The T&T athlete was 25th overall.

The fastest section featured 2019 World Championship bronze medallist Ajee Wilson. The American was the favourite for gold, and lived up to her billing, clocking 1:58.93 to climb to the top of the 2021 world outdoor performance list. Another American, Kaela Edwards was also impressive, finishing second in 1:59.86.