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McLeod ready for solo charge in Rome
June 06, 2025
CAREY McLeod has some thinking, and assessment, to do for himself as he competes without his coach in the men's long jump at today's Diamond League track and field athletics meeting in Rome, Italy.
Ten Jamaicans are slated to compete at the meet.
"When competing without my coach, I have to think on my feet," said McLeod at a press conference yesterday.
"The last time I competed, I saw a guy in the stands and just gave him my phone. After completing my jump, I looked back at it to assess my performance. I'm looking forward to good competition at the meet."
With a season best of 8.33 metres, which places him fourth on World Athletics Top List, McLeod is expected to face stiff challenges from homeboy and world leader, the young Mattia Furlani, who has a season best of 8.37m; Australia's Liam Adcock, with 8.33m; and Olympic champion Miltiadis Tentoglou of Greece, whose season best is 8.27m.
FIRST JAMAICAN
Shanieka Ricketts will be the first Jamaican in action today, contesting the women's triple jump at 12:48 p.m. Jamaica time. Ricketts, the Olympic Games silver medallist and current Diamond League leader after her win in Doha with 14.54 metres, will have her hands full.
She will go up against the Cuban pair, world leader Leyanis Perez Hernandez with 14.93m and Liadagmis Povea with a season best of 14.57m. Also in the line-up is Olympic champion Thea Lafond of Dominica, who finished second behind Ricketts in Doha with 14.39m.
Following a narrow loss to American Payton Otterdahl in Rabat in the men's shot put -- where Otterdahl won with 21.97m on his final attempt -- Rajindra Campbell will be hoping to turn the tables this time. Campbell was second with 21.95m.
Otterdahl also got the better of him a few days later at a World Continental meet in Bydgoscz, Poland, where Campbell finished eighth.
Both Romaine Beckford and Raymond Richards will also be in field event action for Jamaica, contesting the men's high jump.
Beckford is coming off a fourth-place finish with 2.21m in Doha, while Richards, who has a season best of 2.30m, is coming off an eighth-place finish at the same meet.
STRONG RESULTS
On the track, Jamaica is expected to have strong results in the women's 400m hurdles, with the trio of Andrenette Knight, Shiann Salmon and Rushell Clayton set to compete.
Knight, who was second to world champion Femke Bol in Doha, enters with the fastest time of all competitors at 53.90 seconds. Salmon, with a season best of 54.62, and Clayton, at 54.83, could make it a podium sweep for Jamaica.
Both Omar McLeod and Orlando Bennett will line up in the men's 110m hurdles. McLeod has a season best of 13.38 seconds, while Bennett's best so far is 13.39.
World leader Cordell Tinch, with a blistering 12.87, looks set to continue his dominance in the Diamond League, having already picked up two wins this season.
