Sport

Veronica Campbell gets track award

FORMER JAMAICA WORLD Junior Championships sprint double champion, Veronica Campbell, has been named the United States Track Coaches Association's 2004 South Central Region female Track Athlete of the Year.

The University of Arkansas sophomore sprinting sensation cropped the award for an oustanding outdoor season, which comes to an end next week with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Championships.

Created history

The Jamaican who was ruled out of last weekend's NCAA Mideast Regional Championships at Louisiana State University, created history by becoming the first Lady Razorback (a term associated with University of Arkansas female athletes) athlete to sweep the south central region's indoor and outdoor track & field honours in the same year.

She strained a hamstring at the NCAA Mideast Regional last weekend, but is expected to make a full recovery before the NCAA Championships begin on June 9. Campbell's injury was inflicted during the University of Arkansas' preliminary 4x100-meter competition.

"Veronica is a special performer," the University's head coach Lance Harter was quoted on the schools' website as saying. "She deserves the award after the performances that she put together at the Southeastern Conference Championships...now we just want to get her back on the track for the NCAA meet and see what happens," he continued.

Terrific form

Campbell, the 2002 Commonwealth Games 100 metres silver medalist, was in terrific form at the Southeastern Conference Championships in Mississippi in May. The former national 100m champion also had a very good indoors season earlier this year by capturing the sprint double.

In the 200m, Campbell record 22.41 seconds, the second fastest time in the world this season and in the 100m she was timed in 11.12. In the preliminary round of the 100m, Campbell ran 11.10, the sixth fastest time in the world.

On both occasions, she had Louisiana State University's (LSU) and America's top Collegegite sprinter Muna Lee behind her in the 100 metres (11.25) and the 200 metres (22.98).

Campbell now joins the regional athletes of the year from the other eight USTCA areas and will be in contention for the coveted Mondo National Athlete of the Year award -a symbol of America's track and field collegiate excellency.