Austin, Hinckson cop gold at South American Championships
Malachi Austin gestures to the crowd after crossing the line first in the 400m event
Guyana have picked up three medals thus far in the South American Under-20 Athletics Championships, which began on Friday in Lima, Peru.
On Friday evening, 16-year-old Athaleyha Hinckson, who was among the three youngest competitors in the eight-woman race, was the first to bag gold for Guyana, crossing the line in 11.76s in the women’s 100m final.
Colombia’s Maria Maturana crossed the line second in 11.85s, while Brazil’s Vanessa Dos Santos clinched third in 11.86s. The Guyanese teenager had earlier won her semi-final in 11.98s.
Tianna Springer receives her bronze medal
Meanwhile, on Saturday morning, Malachi Austin added to the gold medals when he crossed the line first in the Male 400m event. Austin clocked 47.21s, ahead of Colombia’s Ian Reasco in 47.69s and Brazil’s Vinicius Galen in 48.29s.
In the distaff, Tianna Springer clocked 55.12s for a bronze-medal finish. She was bested only by Brazil’s Julia Ribeiro, who clocked 54.32s for first place and Colombia’s Castro Nahomy, who stopped the clock at 54.87s for the silver medal.
Athaleyha Hinckson stands atop the podium following her South America U20 triumph
While Austin and Springer were only intended to compete in one event, Hinckson will turn her attention to the 200m event. The Guyanese athletes are eyeing qualification for the World Athletics Under-20 Championships, which are scheduled for August 27- 31, also in Lima, Peru.
The Guyanese team was accompanied to Peru by Team Manager Kenisha Headley.
