Well-respected American track and field publication, Track and Field News is forecasting nine medals, including four gold, for Jamaica at the IAAF World Championships that starts in Stratford, London in a week’s time.
The American publication says Jamaican athletes will win four gold medals, three silver and two bronze at the event that will start on August 4 and end on August 13.
Earlier this week, the Jamaica Athletics Administrative Association (JAAA) named a 56-member team to represent the island at the 16th staging of the competition held every two years.
The self-styled “Bible of the sport since 1948” in its most recent predictions, says treble World Record holder Usain Bolt will go into retirement with two more gold medals, winning the 100m a fourth time and leading the men’s 4x100m relay team to victory.
Bolt’s fellow Olympic Games gold medallists Omar McLeod in the 110m hurdles and Elaine Thompson in the women’s 100m are tipped to win their events.
Fedrick Dacres, the second ranked men’s discus thrower in the world, Track and Field News says, should win the silver medal, which would be the island’s first in the event at any senior global championship.
It would also complete the circle of IAAF championships for Dacres who won gold medals in the discus throw at the World Under-18 and Under-20 levels.
Yohan Blake, who will be running in a World Championships for the first time since 2011, is not expected to medal in the shorter sprint, but is pegged for the bronze in the 200m behind South Africa’s Wayne Van Niekerk who is expected to win the 200m/400m double. Canadian Andre De Grasse is down for the silver in the half-lap event.
Blake’s season best 9.90 seconds set while winning the 100m at the JAAA National Senior Championships last month, is the second fastest this year to American Christian Coleman (9.82 seconds) who is not expected to medal.
Both women’s relay teams, the 4x100m and 4x400m are expected to finish behind the American squads, while the men’s 4x400m team is down for the bronze behind the USA and Botswana.
Defending 100m hurdles champion Danielle Williams is not expected by Track and Field News to medal as American World Record holder Kendra Harrison, Australian Sally Pearson and another American Nia Ali are expected to take the medals.
There are a few interesting predictions with American Allyson Felix expected to avenge her close loss to the Bahamas’ Shaunae Miller-Uibo, who pipped her at the Olympics in Rio last year.
Miller-Uibo threw herself across the finish line in Rio, appearing to execute a dive in one of the more controversial finishes in the track and field portion of the Olympic Games.
Kyron McMaster of the British Virgin Islands, who won the 400m hurdles at the JII Meet in May, is tipped to take the silver medal in the event behind American Kerron Clement with Norway’s Karsten Warholm third.
Venezuela’s World leader Yulimar Rojas is down to beat Colombia’s triple jump queen Caterine Ibargüen in one of the more bold predictions. (Paul Reid/ Jamaica Observer)
