McNeil bags bronze as Guyana makes strong start in athletics at SA Youth Games

Guyana opened its athletics campaign at the South American Youth Games 2026 in Panama City on a positive note on Wednesday, with middle-distance runner Ebo McNeil securing the country’s first track and field medal of the Games.
McNeil delivered a determined run to claim bronze in the Boys’ Under-20 1500m, stopping the clock at 4 minutes 07.03 seconds. Peru’s Thiago Carnero won gold in 4:01.86, while Ecuador’s Leymer Pacheco took silver in 4:03.46. McNeil’s 1500m bronze adds to Guyana’s only other medal at the games, also a bronze, won by boxer Ken Harvey.
Guyana came close to another podium finish in the men’s long jump, where David Williams placed fourth with a best leap of 6.89m. His series included jumps of 6.85m, 6.81m, 6.89m, 6.84m and 6.77m. Argentina’s Pedro Olmos secured gold with 7.30m, Brazil’s Joao De Souza claimed silver with 7.03m and Chile’s Nicolas Holmes took bronze with 6.94m.

On the track, Guyana’s sprinters produced encouraging performances in the Boys’ Under-20 100m semi-finals. Gordon Thompson clocked 10.74 seconds to win semi-final one and secure automatic qualification, while Ezekiel Millington was even more impressive, posting the fastest overall qualifying time of 10.60 seconds to win semi-final two and book his place in Thursday’s final.
The lone female representative in the event, Angel Jeffrey, failed to advance after finishing fourth in her semi-final with a time of 12.48 seconds.
In the 400m events, Guyana secured two finalists. Ade Sealy ran 49.07 seconds to finish second in his heat behind Colombia’s Serjio Rojas (48.12s), while Akeela Dover advanced in the women’s division after clocking 55.85 seconds to place second to Colombia’s Laura Martinez (55.60s). Joanna Anthon narrowly missed qualification after finishing fifth at 1:01.06, just outside the fastest-loser spot.
The distance events proved more challenging for Guyana’s female contingent, with Adanya Glen finishing 10th in the women’s 1500m in 5:23.16. The race was won by Chile’s Valentina Troncoso in 4:26.84, ahead of Argentina’s Zoe Gorski and Brazil’s Nicole Faria.
Guyana’s mixed 4x400m relay team of Deuquan Farrell, Jeffrey, Dover and Sealy placed fifth in 3:37.84. Colombia won the event in 3:26.75, with Ecuador second in 3:26.82 and Venezuela third in 3:30.34.
The Guyanese campaign continues today with strong medal prospects in the Boys’ 100m final and both the Boys’ and Girls’ 400m finals.
Attention will also shift to other disciplines, with Guyana’s 3×3 basketball team, comprising Stephan Duke, Daniel Chisholm, Kadeem Beckles and Jaden Simon under coach Sileena Arjune, set to begin competition. Meanwhile, the chess duo of Italy Tonne-Chung and Candidate Master Sachin Pitamber, guided by FIDE Master Anthony Drayton, will also open their tournament.