Baptiste, Gordon, Borel among IAAF ‘those to watch list’

Trinidad and Tobago’s sprinting sensation Kelly Ann Baptiste, hurdler Jehue Gordon and shot puter Cleopatra Borel Brown are among several athletes who have been tipped to shine at the 13th IAAF World Outdoor Track and Field Championships which will get underway on Saturday in South Korea. Former national sprint queen Baptiste is among the headliners in the women’s 100m. In a preview of the event on the International Association of Athletic Federation Web site, Baptiste is one who could cause an upset. The Web site stated: “The 2003 World Youth bronze medallist is another from the richly talented Caribbean Islands who could throw a spanner in the works of the main contenders and could be a big player on the world stage. She could be a very serious threat to the sprint pack.”

The Plymouth resident enters the event as the fifth fastest on the world list following her 10.91 victory in Paris, France on July 8 when she defeated triple Olympic champion Veronica Campbell-Brown (Jamaica).
Ahead of her on the rankings are American Carmelita Jeter (10.70) and Marshevet Mayers (10.86) and Jamaicans Campbell-Brown (10.76) and Kerron Stewart (10.87). Baptiste beat Stewart at the Jamaican Invitational on May 7 and also in Paris. The 2010 Continental Cup winner also whipped reigning World and Olympic Champion Shelly Ann Fraser-Pryce (Jamaica) in London on August 6. Baptiste’s only losses for the year have been to Jeter in Jamaica and London. Gordon created a stir at last World Championships in Berlin Germany two years ago when as a 17 year old he finished a remarkable fourth after coming into the home stretch in medal position. Since then he went on to take the 2010 World Junior title and has been featured by the BBC as one of the athletes to watch in next year’s Olympic Games London. He goes to Daegu with the ninth best time of all the entrants and according the IAAF prediction he is “rounding into good shape.”

Two time Commonwealth medallist Borel is seeking her first ‘Worlds’ Outdoor  women’s shot put finals and seems set to do so after she set a national outdoor mark of 19.42 in July. The seventh best throw of 2011 is rated as the best of the rest in this year’s world lists. The Mayaro athlete took the Central American and Caribbean Championships title in Puerto Rico in July and “will be relishing the prospect of performing on the global stage.” Though not listed in the men’s 100m after his national record of 9.85 earlier this month Richard Thompson will lead this country’s men’s 4x100m which has been noted as “are entitled to think they are in with a shout at a medal”. The local sprint team will be going for a fourth World Championships medal after silver lining success in 2001, 2005 and 2009.