DEON HEMMINGS

DEON HEMMINGS was the first woman to win an Olympic Games gold medal for Jamaica.

The historic feat came at the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta where she out-ran and out-leapt her opponents to win the 400m hurdles.

Now Hemmings-McCatty, she started her athletics career as a nine-year-old doing the sprints. She moved to Vere Technical but didn't enjoy a successful high school career.

However, she managed to get into Central State University in Ohio, and it was during her days at that institution that she found coach Josh Culbreath, the 1956 Olympic 400 metres hurdles bronze medallist.

From then on, Hemmings' career rose to another level.

A licensed real estate agent, Hemmings' career also includes a second-place finish at the Sydney Olympic Games in 2000 and the 1997 World Championships. She also bagged bronze medals at the 1995 and 1999 World Championships.

She won gold at the 1998 Goodwill Games and the Central American and Caribbean Games before rounding off the season with second at the World Cup. Regionally, she won medals at the Central American and Caribbean Championships, Pan-American Games, Commonwealth Games and Central American and Caribbean Games.

On several occasions, she played a pivotal role on Jamaica's mile relay teams. She left the sport with a personal best and national record of 52.82 in the 400m hurdles and 50.63 in the 400m.

- A.F.

PATRICIA MCDONALD

PATRICIA MCDONALD is credited with leading the transformation of Jamaican netball in the 1980s. The towering goal shooter from August Town drove fear into the hearts of defenders while simultaneously helping to narrow the gap between Jamaica and the traditional dominators, New Zealand and Australia.

She is also credited for changing the way shooters were defended. Her 6' 3" frame towered above her opponents and Jamaica's attack was built around her as she could receive the ball from as far as centre-court. This forced other countries to begin using tall defenders to match her.

'Cricket', as she was affectionately called, won bronze with Jamaica at the World Games in Singapore in 1985 and the 1991 World Championships in Australia. She also won the top-shooter award at the 1983, '87 and '91 World Championships.

Then national coach Barbara Sinclair recalls a moment which defined McDonald.

"During a series against England at the Wembley Arena in November 1984, we were down 11 points entering the final quarter," Sinclair recounted.

"Patricia was sick so she wasn't playing. However, she came into the game in the final quarter and totally turned it around. We won 51-49 and that victory was special because it was our first series victory against England. That and other performances by Patricia helped us to earn respect from the other nations."

- L.F.

GEORGE HEADLEY

BORN ON May 30, 1909 in Panama, George Headley was taken to Jamaica at the age of 10 and went on to become arguably the finest West Indian batsman of all time.

Headley had a career batting average in Test cricket of an exceptional 60.83, the third highest of any player and behind only Sir Donald Bradman and Graeme Pollock. Playing mainly off the back foot, Headley was an attacking batsman; a fine cutter and a powerful driver of the ball.

He played in the first Test match on West Indian soil in 1930, scoring 176 against England at Kensington, Barbados, and went on to score an exceptional aggregate of 703 runs in the series at an average of 87.87, which included four centuries.

Headley was also the first West Indian to score a century in each innings of a Test match - 114 and 112 against England at Bourda, Guyana, in 1930.

In 1948 the player achieved another career milestone when he became the first black man to captain the West Indies. In his final appearance in January 1954 he set a record as the oldest West Indian Test cricketer at 44 years and 236 days. His career record stands at 2,190 runs in 22 Test matches and 40 innings. Headley died on November 30, 1983.

- K.M.

MERLENE OTTEY

DESPITE THE fact she is now representing another country, and an Olympic gold medal has eluded her on several occasions, Merlene Ottey remains one of Jamaica's greatest track and field athletes.

Ottey has been at or near the top of women's sprinting for more than 20 years. One of her most outstanding statistics is the fact that she has has run the 100m 67 times under 11 seconds, a feat only bettered by American Marion Jones (69).

She is the fourth fastest woman ever, 10.74, only behind Florence Griffith-Joyner (10.49), Jones (10.65) and Christine Arron (10.73).

In a career for Jamaica spanning two decades, Ottey won five individual Olympic medals, her best, a double silver in 1996, before that, a double bronze in 1984.

She was also a 200m bronze medal winner in Barcelona in 1992.

At the World Championships level, she won the 200m twice, first in Stuttgart (1993) and two years later in Gothenburg. She also won three silver medals in the 100m those same years. She also has five bronze medals at this level.

At IAAF World Indoor Champion-ships, Ottey won three gold, the 200m twice and the 60m in Barcelona 1995. She departed the Jamaicans shores with four national records, 100m (10.74), 200m (21.64), along the indoor records of 6.96 (60m) and 6.00 (50m). She also holds the World Indoor 200m record of 21.87.

The former Vere Technical student has broken the national 100m record seven times. She first established the mark when she erased Lelieth Hodges' 11.14 in Austin, Texas, in 1981, when she ran 11.07. She broke it again in 1982 (11.03), then 11.01 (1984), and because the first Jamaican woman to break 11 seconds on April 28, 1985, when she ran 10.92 in California. She is now 46 years old and still running.

- A.F.

COURTNEY WALSH

BORN IN Kingston on October 30, 1962, Courtney Walsh first came to public attention when he took 10 wickets - five taken with spin and five with seam - in a Sunlight cricket match for Excelsior in 1979. Three years later he made his first-class debut and made his Test debut against Australia in Perth in 1984, where he took two wickets for 43 runs.

Later that year he went on to make his one-day international debut against Sri Lanka at Brisbane. In 1994, he was appointed captain of the West Indies Test team for the tours of India and New Zealand after Richie Richardson was ordered to rest because of 'acute fatigue syndrome'.

One year later, Walsh took 62 Test wickets at an average of 21.75 runs per wicket, a phenomenal performance which he would better in 2000 when he took 66 Test wickets at an average of 18.69. This included 34 wickets in a Test series against England at an average of 12.82 runs per wicket.

Walsh came near but missed out on bettering the record for a West Indian bowler of 35 wickets in a Test series, set by Malcolm Marshall in 1988. In the 1990s, his partnership with Antiguan Curtley Ambrose was one of the most feared bowling attacks in world cricket.

He is one of only four bowlers to have bowled more than 5,000 overs in Test cricket, the other three being spinners: Muttiah Muralitharan of Sri Lanka and Shane Warne of Australia, and Anil Kumble of India. Walsh took 519 Test wickets, which was the world record until passed by Muttiah Muralitharan in Zimbabwe in 2004.

On Monday, March 19, 2001, at Queens Park Oval, Trinidad, in the second Test between West Indies and South Africa, he became the first bowler to claim 500 Test wickets.

Walsh played his last one-day international against New Zealand in 2000 and his last Test match against South Africa in his homeland, Jamaica, in 2001.

- K.M.

DONALD QUARRIE

DONALD QUARRIE is regarded as one of the finest sprinters in the history of track and field. He is also considered the greatest runner around the bend.

Quarrie competed in five Olympic Games and this is considered an exceptional accomplishment for a sprinter. The high point of his career came in the 1976 Olympics in Montreal. Quarrie captured the gold in the 200m and the silver in the 100m. His silver finish was just 0.01 seconds behind the winner, Hasely Crawford of Trinidad and Tobago.

While training for the 1980 Moscow Olympics, Quarrie was in a car accident. He was able to recover and make the team and ended up with the bronze medal in the 200m.

The Commonwealth Games was where Quarrie had some of his best performances. He became the first male athlete to earn six gold medals in that competition. Quarrie's outstanding career would not be complete without being a world record holder. In 1971, he broke the world record for the 200m. He ran a blistering 19.80 seconds at the Pan American Games in Cali, Columbia. In 1976, he tied the world record for the 100m with a time of 9.9.

Quarrie has received recognition both on and off the field. A statue of him is proudly positioned at the entrance to the National Stadium. There is also a school (Donald Quarrie High School) in eastern Kingston that bears his name .

Many Jamaicans still refer to him in casual conversation, citing his speed in comparison to an event. Comments like, "I was running so fast, not even Don Quarrie could have caught me that night" are common among Jamaican nationals.

- H.W.

HERB MCKENLEY

HERB MCKENLEY, who celebrated his 84th birthday on July 10, 2006, is widely recognised as Jamaica's most versatile track and field athlete of all time.

He remains the only man to reach the finals of all three sprints, 100m, 200m and 400m, at the Olympic Games. He was also the first athlete from the English-speaking Caribbean to set a world record on the track following his 46.3 for 440 yards in 1947.

McKenley went into the 1948 Olympics in London as the hot favourite for the 400m. Weeks before the Games he became the first man to run the 400m under 46 seconds, clocking 45.9, and he was expected to crown himself in glory at the London Games by taking gold in the one-lap event. On the day he was upstaged by countryman Arthur Wint in the 400m but McKenley still had a very good Games as he reached the 200m final and placed fourth.

Four years later in Helsinki, Finland, McKenley was beaten by the slimmest of margins in the 100m. To this day, many believe the Jamaican's storming late rush had got him home ahead of American Lindy Remigino. Both were credited with the same hand time, 10.4.

McKenley was again second in the 400m, this time behind another Jamaican, George Rhoden, but he would make his mark in the 4x400m and get a deserving gold medal.

After two legs, the first by Wint and Les Laing on the second, Jamaica had fallen behind arch rivals United States by 12 metres. Running the third leg, McKenley not only made up the gap but handed over to Rhoden a metre ahead. His leg was a fantastic 44.6 seconds, the first time a relay leg was run under 45 seconds. Inspired by McKenley, Jamaica went under the world record by more than four seconds, the biggest improvement in the history of the event.

Like Wint, McKenley's Olympic career ended with four medals, one gold and three silver.

- E.T.

MIKE MCCALLUM

MIKE MCCALLUM started his boxing career as an amateur at the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal, Canada, where he was eliminated in the quarter-finals, but that was the beginning for the boxer who was to become one of, if not Jamaica's best fighter.

McCallum was known as 'The Body-Snatcher' because he specialised in body punching, but unlike most other body punchers, he did not take head punches in return because he was defensively so adept.

He won world titles in three different weight categories, capturing the WBA junior middleweight, WBA middleweight and WBC light heavyweight crowns.

McCallum had an excellent amateur career, compiling a 240-10 record.

In 1984 at the age of 28, he became world champion by defeating Sean Mannion of Ireland to win the WBA junior middleweight title and provided Jamaica with its first world champion.

After dominating the junior middleweight class, in 1988 he moved up to middleweight, suffering his first defeat in an attempt to win the WBA middleweight title from Sumbu Kalambay of Zaire.

In 1989, he defeated Englishman Herol 'The Bomber' Graham to win the vacant WBA middleweight title. He defended the title several times, defeating Steve Collins, Michael Watson and Kalambay, to avenge his only earlier loss.

His two fights with James Toney in 1991 and 1992 were exciting and full of excellent boxing on both sides. The first fight, which was a draw, was named 'Fight of the Year' by Ring Magazine.

After losing the Toney rematch by a majority decision, McCallum moved up in weight and won the vacant WBC light heavyweight title by outpointing former champion Jeff Harding of Australia.

He lost his title to Italian Fabrice Tiozzo and failed in his attempt to regain the title from American Roy Jones Jr, who was considered to be one of best fighters of all time, but lost by decision.

In his last fight, McCallum lost his rubber match to Toney in an attempt to win the lightly regarded WBU cruiserweight title.

He retired with a record of 49 wins, five defeats and one draw, with 36 KOs. He was never knocked out.

- H.W.

LINDY DELAPENHA

LLOYD LINDBERG Delapenha was the first black to play professional football in England. A true sportsman by nature, he excelled in track and field and cricket as well.

Delapenha was a pioneer for blacks across the world who had dreams of playing professionally in England.

His career started at Portsmouth where he won the Division One league championship in 1948 and 1949.

He spent most of his playing years with Middlesbrough (1950-59) where he scored 100 goals in 300 appearances for the club. He set a club record for most goals scored in a season with 22 in 1952.

The former army man (he served in the British Army in the Middle East after World War II) and finished his career at third division club Mansfield Town (1959-1964) before returning home.

Additionally, Delapenha is considered one of the greatest schoolboy athletes of all time. He played Manning Cup for Wolmer's Boys at 12, excelled in cricket at Munro College and once participated in eight finals at the high schools' athletic championships.

Delapenha's 'greatness', however, transcended what he did on the football field. By excelling in England, Delapenha paved the path for future black players to ply their trade in Britain.

- L.F.

ARTHUR WINT

ARTHUR WINT was Jamaica's first truly great sportsman.

At the London Olympics in 1948 the tall, lanky Wint, who stood at 6' 6", won Jamaica's first Olympic gold medal in the 400 metres, beating countryman Herb McKenley and the rest of the world in 46.2 seconds.

The versatile Wint added a silver in the 800m in 1:49.5 as Jamaica ended the Games with one gold and two silver medals.

Four years later, at the age of 32, Wint competed in three finals at the Helsinki Olympics.

He ran the opening leg as Jamaica won gold in the 4x400m in a world record 3:03.9.

Earlier, he had repeated his silver in the 800m and was fifth in the 400m behind compatriots George Rhoden and McKenley, as for the second consecutive Games Jamaica pocketed gold and silver in the 400m.

The island's performance in the 4x400m, in which they beat an outstanding American quartet, remains a part of national track and field folklore and has inspired numerous generations of great athletes since then.

Wint, who died in 1992, ended his Olympic career with four medals, two gold and two silver. It remains to date the best medal haul performance by a Jamaican male at the Games.