News12 Jul 2003


Streete-Thompson defends CAC Long Jump title in Grenada

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Kareem Streete-Thompson jumping at the Primo Nebiolo Memorial (© Getty Images)

Hey everybody!

As I write this journal, I am on the beautiful island of Grenada having just defended my CAC Championships Long Jump title.

It was a tough test for all the jumpers because we needed 2 days to finish the competition due to time constraints. I knew I needed to stay mentally tough to come through with the win.

As it turned out, I was facing elimination on my 3rd attempt, when I jumped the winning jump! This competition will only help me to be stronger mentally as I seek Pan-Am and World Championship titles later this year.

This island is sooo beautiful! From the moment I stepped off the plane I fell in love with it! As it is, I don't think Caribbean athletes get enough opportunities to show their own people their talents, with most of the meets being held in Europe, Asia and the USA.

It felt really good when people came up to me to congratulate me on my win. I will get another chance to perform in the Caribbean region with the Pan Am Games coming up in Santo Domingo in August.

Before the CAC Championships I got invited to Grand Prix meets in Trikala and Prague. Having jumped my best jump in 2 years (8.21m) in Bad Langensalza back in June, I was excited about going up against probably the best long jump field assembled so far this year in Trikala.

However, a loss of concentration caused me to abort my first jump, and I never really recovered in time to secure a place in the finals. To add insult to injury, the long jump competition turned out to be as advertised, with the top 6 jumpers jumping over 8m!

The lesson I learned was that for future competitions I would have to be mentally stronger, to avoid a result like that in Trikala.

I next travelled to Prague and I was determined not to have a repeat performance! Any doubts I may have carried from Trikala about my abilities were erased as I started the competition! On my 5th jump, I jumped 8.15m and I knew I had won. This turned out to be my first win on the Grand Prix circuit since 2001.

Funny enough, my last win on the Grand Prix circuit was at this same meet back in 2001! With the win in Prague followed by my win here in Grenada, hopefully I can continue the streak as I prepare for Paris!

Ciao for now!

KST

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