Anthony Foster, Freelance Writer

TWO RECORDS were broken on yesterday's opening day of the 2007 ISSA/GraceKennedy Boys and Girls Athletics Championships as Vere Technical and Wolmer's surged ahead.

On a day when only three girls finals were contested, Vere's Kimberly Williams leapt 13.52 metres in the triple jump Open and Calabar's Ramone McKenzie ran 21.11 seconds in the boys' Class Two 200m for the records.

Vere lead the girls section with 28 points. Edwin Allen (16), Holmwood (15), Manchester High (13), St. Andrew (11), St. Jago (10), St. Elizabeth Technical (nine), Immaculate (five) and Morant Bay (three) were the only other teams with points.

In the boys section, Wolmer's lead with 12 points, ahead of Calabar (nine), Kingston College (six), Jamaica College (four), Morant Bay (three), Herbert Morrison (two) and Rusea's (one).

Williams' jump beat the previous mark of 13.43m held by former Meadowbrook jumper Shelly-Ann Gallimore since 1999. Holmwood's Salcia Slack was second with a leap of 12.96m while St. Jago's Melissa Ogbourne was third with 12.64m.

In the boys Class Two, McKenzie, of whom there were rumours suggesting he wasn't 100 per cent fit yesterday morning, easily took heat five in 21.11 seconds. He beat Camperdown's Remaldo Rose's three-year-old mark of 21.18.

Meanwhile, in the day's other finals, St. Andrew High's Monique Wint threw 33.69m to win the girls Class Three discus while Manchester High's Geneva Greaves hurled the Class One discus 40.12m for victory.

Keneisha Throughsingh of Vere (37.26m) and Edwin Allen's Latanya Nation (37.10m) were second and third in Class One while Shaneka Jones of St. Elizabeth Technical was second with 31.63mand Edwin Allen's Sasha-Gay did 30.82m for third in Class Two.

In the lone boys final, the Class One long jump, Calabar's Nicholas Gordon leapt 7.56m to beat Wolmer's' Robert Peddlar (7.43m) and KC's Tarik Batchelor (7.37).

Mixed feelings

KC's coach, Lennox Graham, had mixed feelings about yesterday.

"We are still in it," Graham said, "we got some, we lost some."

In the Class One boys 200m, Denard Coote of Green Island leads the qualifiers with 21.52 going into Saturday morning's semi-finals. KC's Oshane Berham (21.73) and Omar Johnson of Claude McKay (21.82) are the next best. Favourite Yohan Blake of St. Jago (21.96), who won heat two, had the 15th fastest time.

Edwin Allen's Andrea Sutherland, with 59.85 seconds, leads the qualifiers into what is expected to be a competitive girls 400m hurdles set for tomorrow.

Favourite Shana-Gaye Tracey of Manchester High (60.71), Andrea Reid of Holmwood (60.31) and Judith Riley of Manchester ( 61.17), are the other top athletes in the final.

The preliminary rounds of the 400m, 800m and 100m races are on today.