By NAN Sports Editor
News Americas, NEW YORK, NY, Fri. June 16, 2017: Usain Bolt’s reign on the world’s sprint stage will come to an end this summer as the triple Olympian hangs up his running shoes after the world Championships in London this August.
Bolt has already called it quits on home soil, with a show on June 10th in Kingston at the Annual Racers Grand Prix Track Meet that proved he is still number one – even if the top runner admitted he was nervous and it was not a very good race at all.
But while Bolt is moving on by choice, there are several Caribbean sprinters looking to move into the vacant slot.
According to the IAAF latest 2017 rankings, the person most likely to take Bolt’s place could be compatriot Yohan Blake, given his performance this year.
These are the top Caribbean-born men’s sprinters for 2017:
1: Yohan Blake
Jamaican-born Yohan ‘The Beast’ Blake, seemed set to take the throne or the baton from his friend and training partner, Usain Bolt. Blake is ranked at fourth in the world currently according to the IAAF in men’s 100-m sprints for 2017. The two-time Olympic gold medalist ran 9.93 on home soil in Kingston in May and also runs in the 200-m and is the second fastest man ever in both 100-m and 200-m. He holds the Jamaican national junior record for the 100 metres, and was formerly the youngest sprinter to have broken the 10-second barrier at 19 years.
2: Jereem Richards
Trinidad and Tobago-born athlete, Jereem Richards, is ranked as the fifth best athlete in the men’s 200-m sprints this year with a time of 19.97 which he ran in Lexington, KY. Richards also specializes in the 400-m. He was part of the Trinidad and Tobago team that won the bronze medal in the 4×400 m relay at the 2012 IAAF World Indoor Championships.
3: Steven Gardiner
The Bahamas’ Steven Gardiner is ranked at number 2 in the world in the 400-m sprint category. He has a personal best of 44.26 seconds for the distance, was a silver medallist at the 2015 IAAF World Relays and is also the National Record Holder for the distance. Gardiner is only 21 and is from Murphy Town, Abaco. He is the youngest Bahamian ever, at 19 years old, to run the distance under 45 seconds.
4: Nathon Allen
Nathon Allen, 21, is ranked third in the world this year in the 400-m sprints. The Jamaican track and field athlete has a time of 44.52. He is an alumnus of St. Jago High School and was only one of two school boys named to represent Jamaica at second staging of the World Relays in Nassau.
