On the first day of athletics at the South American Youth Games in Santiago, Chile on Friday, arguably Guyana’s best hope of a medal, Kenisha Phillips got off to a winning start in the female 100 metres eliminators.
She tied for first place with Colombian Sharry Quinonez in a time of 12.11s while Brazilian Vitoria Jardim was third in 12.29s running into a minus head wind of 2.1 per cent.
For the males, Guyana’s Jermain King was joint second in his eliminator as he tied with Mario Aguirre in a time of 11.01s while Paraguay’s Fabrizio Aquino was first in a time of 10.96s.
Up to press time, the semi-finals of both the male and female 100m events were yet to be run off; those results will be published in a subsequent report.
Meanwhile, on Thursday, Guyana’s 3X3 basketball team were edged 13-11 by Ecuador in their opening game.
It was Guyana’s first time playing at an international 3X3 tournament, and the quartet of Nigel Bowen, Isaiah Hintzen, Akeem Crandon and Shamar France were hoping for a perfect start in their quest for gold.
Having lost to Venezuela 19-17 in their first game, Ecuador came into the game knowing that the clash against Guyana was a ‘must-win’.
Aaron Garcia, the team’s main marksman, who finished the game with five points, was a bother for the Guyanese and, along with his teammate Michael Toctaquiza (four), caused much trouble for the players from the Land of Many Waters.
Crandon, the team’s ‘big man’, kept Guyana in the game. Crandon finished with a team-high five points, while Bowen finished with four points. Hintzen and France scored a point each.
