SPORTS SECTION E
MONDAY, JULY 25, 2016
Bodybuilding
Championships, Page 2
A ‘red carpet’ welcome home for Jonquel Jones By BRENT STUBBS Senior Sports Reporter bstubbs@tribunemedia.net HOLMES Rock, Grand Bahama — Jonquel Jones hails from a little settlement that reads on its sign: Welcome to Holmes Rock, the home of Togetherness. It’s an unique community that sits in between Eight Mile Rock and West End and now is popularised by the second Bahamian to play in the Women’s National Basketball Association. Despite its togetherness, Jones was speechless as the Grand Bahama Power Company, HOYTES, the Ministry for Grand Bahama and the Bahamas Basketball Federation came together on Saturday to welcome her home with a “red carpet” treatment at the Grand Bahama International Airport. And although it rained on the parade, the 22-year-old Jones was still escorted on a motorcade to her hometown settlement, ending
JONQUEL JONES and Buddy Hield are surrounded by junkanoo dancers during their welcome home over the weekend. Photo by Vandyke Hepburn/BIS
‘Buddymania’ rocks gym By RENALDO DORSETT Sports Reporter rdorsett@tribunemedia.net THE inaugural Buddy Hield Invitational produced one of the best endings event organisers could ask for, a near capacity crowd and a thrilling finish on the court. Adam Johnson scored 23 points, grabbed 14 rebounds and dished five assists to lead Team Alpha to a 94-93 win over Team Elite at the Kendal Isaacs Gymnasium Saturday afternoon. Along with MVP honours, Johnson - who led his Jordan Prince William Falcons to a BAISS Championship this past season - was awarded the invitational’s ultimate prize, a $10,000 college scholarship. “This really feels great, having the opportunity to show what I can do in front of this crowd,” said Johnson. “It means a lot that I was selected as the MVP, because it means that people are watching and taking note. Even though we went down in the game, we kept believing in each other and we stayed strong.” Johnson beat out a talented field for the MVP honour, most notably Corey Sands of the CC Sweeting Cobras who finished with 12 points and 10 assists. Hield said he was impressed by the effort and skill level of the players throughout the afternoon. “I thought the game was great. Team Elite fought back, but they didn’t fight hard enough. Simple mistakes by some young guys cost them, but today was all about togetherness and playing for the community,” he said. “I just wanted the kids to learn from this and to use this as an experience moving forward. Thanks to all the sponsors that came and backed this and to all the organisers that
IT was like poetry in motion for Shaunae Miller as she pulled away from the field and easily sped to the world’s leading time of 2016 - and a personal best - of 49.55 seconds to win the London Diamond League women’s 400 metres at the London Olympic Stadium on Friday. In the meet that was dubbed the “London Anniversary Games”, marking four years since the Olympic Games was held there, Miller opened the gap on her pursuers even wider as she surged to the finish line, leaving her nearest rival, Stephanie Ann McPherson from Jamaica, a distant second in 50.40. American Natasha Hastings was third in 50.49. “I just give God thanks for giving me the opportunity,” Miller told The Tribune. “Coming out
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BAHAMAS 38TH OVERALL BUT BRINGING HOME ZERO MEDALS FROM IAAF WORLDS UNDER-20 By BRENT STUBBS Senior Sports Reporter bstubbs@tribunemedia.net
THE BUDDY Hield Basketball Invitational took place at Kendal G.L. Isaacs Gym on Saturday. Shown (l-r) are Minister of Youth, Sports and Culture Daniel Johnson with Buddy Hield and the Slam Dunk champion. Photo by Patrick Hanna/BIS helped make it possible.” The invitational capped a hectic four-day schedule for Hield, who looked most comfortable back in his environment on the basketball court. “Its been crazy. I don’t think I’ve slept yet but I have to give it all back to the people. The people support me so much and I have to give it all back to them,” Hield said. “Being where I come from, sticking to my roots, everyone seeing me all over television, giving it back to them is important and seeing one of their own giving back is a big deal. I’m just trying to inspire kids to be the next Buddy Hield.” Closely contested throughout, the game was tied at the end of the first quarter and team Elite led headed into both the third and fourth quarters.
Trailing by six entering the fourth, team Alpha would go on a run that produced an 18-point swing and they eventually led by as much as 12. Charles Rahming was fouled with three seconds remaining and knocked down two free throws on the opposite end to put team Alpha up 94-93 for the game’s final margin. Azaro Roker of the Anatol Rodgers Timberwolves led team Elite with 22 points and 14 rebounds. He also won the High Flyers Slam Dunk Contest while Janeko Russell of the Tabernacle Falcons won the Three-Point shooting contest. Tabernacle teammates Cedric Delancey and Franco Miller finished with 16 and 17 points for Team Alpha respectively.
“Seeing that Buddy was just drafted into the NBA, it was a great opportunity to come out and represent for him. I just wanted to come out and showcase my talents,” Miller said. “Growing up I was always hearing about Buddy so I tried to mimic my game after his a little bit and I feel like I can be the kind of the same player.” Kaleel Solomon of the Sunland Stingers finished with 15 points while Livingston Bromwell of Ridley College in Ontario, Canada finished with 13 points and 11 rebounds for Team Elite “I thought it definitely was fun. I came out here, shared the ball and had a blast with these fellas,” said Solomon who is bound for Eastern Florida State College in the Fall.
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Shaunae posts world-leading time in 400m By BRENT STUBBS Senior Sports Reporter bstubbs@tribunemedia.net
up on the basketball court at the Community Center where she harnessed her skills as a basketball player. “It’s been great. I was expecting a celebration, but I didn’t expect it to be the way it was in the airport,” said Jones, who was greeted by hundreds of cheering family members and friends to the rhythmic sounds of the junkanoo music in the background. “It was like a party, literally it was a party in the airport, so I was definitely ecstatic to see all of that. I was just grateful to see that Grand Bahama and the GB Power really care and to come together to make this thing really happen.” Taking advantage of the break as the WNBA allows its players to get prepared to travel to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, to participate for their respective countries at the 2016 Olympic Games from August 5-21, Jones said this gives her a good chance to put her career in
this time with a world leading and a pb, it’s an amazing feeling. One of my coaches was down here with me and everything went very smooth. We’re trying a few new race models like I said earlier in the season, but we’re still trying to figure out exactly what we are going to do. “But the race felt fine, it felt really well. I felt like I executed really well. But we still played around with it a bit, but we still have more in the tank for Rio.” The 2016 Olympic Games is scheduled for August 5-21 in Brazil. Improving on her previous personal best of 49.67 that she ran in Beijing, China, last year to claim the silver medal behind American Allyson Felix, Miller said she is eager to get back to training for Rio, where her ultimate goal is to go after the gold medal. In order to claim that elusive Olympic medal, the 22-year-old
SHAUNAE MILLER, of the Bahamas, celebrates after winning the 400 metres race during the Diamond League anniversary games at The Stadium, in the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in London, on July 22. (AP)
acknowledges that she will have to at least break Tonique Williams’ national record of 49.07 that she set in Berlin, Germany, on September 12, 2004. She said whatever it takes, she is going to be prepared to do it. It signifies that Miller will definitely be running the 400m in Rio and may not pursue the 200m or go for the double. Nor did she comment on her availability for the women’s 4 x 400m relay after the team of Shaquania Dorsett, Carmeisha Cox, Christine Amertil and Lanece Clarke were awarded the 16th and final spot by the IAAF after upholding the doping ban on Russia. Miller, by the way, once held the fastest time in the world for the 200m with 22.05 she ran in Kingston, Jamaica on June 11, but she has seen that slip down to number four.
THE Bahamas didn’t win any medals at the IAAF World Under-20 Championships in Bydgoszcz, Poland, over the weekend. But Jenae Ambrose joined new national discus junior and senior record holder Serena Brown in coming close to getting on the podium in the Zawisza Stadium as the Bahamas finished 38th overall in the placing standings with the pair of fourth place finishes. The United States of America topped the list with 213 points after a dominating performance that produced a total of 21 medals, inclusive of 11 gold, six silver and four bronze. Kenya and Ethiopia rounded out the top three in each category for second and third respectively. Ambrose, the last of the Bahamian 14-member team to compete on Saturday, came in fourth in the 200m in 25.53 seconds as Edidiong Ofonime Odiong from Bahrain ran a national record of 22.84 for the gold. Evelyn Rivera of Colombia got the silver in a personal best of 23.21 and Estelle Raffai of France was the bronze medalist in 23.48. On Thursday, Brown inked her name in the Bahamian record books for the second time. This time, it was in the final of the women’s discus when she threw 52.73 metres on her first attempt to erase Lavern Eve’s national record. In the qualifying round on Tuesday, Brown eclipsed Chafree Bain’s junior national by turning in the eighth best mark of 50.94m to get into the final. No other Bahamian advanced to the final in their respective event. On Friday, Sasha Wells came in fourth in her heat of the women’s 100m hurdles in 14.12 for 34th place overall. Charisma Taylor, nursing an injury she sustained in training in Poland, got seventh in her heat in 14.94 for 42nd overall.