Gwendolyn Smith captures World Masters shot put silver

GWENDOLYN Smith captured Trinidad and Tobago’s first medal of the World Masters (Over 35) Outdoor Track and Field Championships in Tampere, Finland on Thursday.

Competing in the women’s 55-59 shot put final on day two, Smith launched the iron sphere a season-best distance of 13.18 metres to secure silver.

Smith, a former world indoor and masters’ champion, achieved the distance on her fifth attempt and missed out on gold by mere centimetres.

Winning the event was Ukraine’s Svitlana Sorochuk with 13.24m while Chilean Marcela Barrientos held on to bronze with her 12.24m distance.

Additionally, Chevon Simpson and Michelle Sturge were fourth and sixth in their respective 100m finals.

Simpson missed out on a medal in the men’s 35-39 100m finals after he crossed the line in 10.84 seconds; the same time as two other competitors – Sweden’s Stefan Tärnhuvud-Seden and American Chrisdon Hargret.

Tärnhuvud was adjudged third with Simpson and Hargret joint fourth. France's Antony Couffe (10.49s) won the event while American Rondrick Parke (10.50s) claimed silver.

In the semi-final, Simpson clocked 11.01s, the sixth-fastest time of the advancing eight. He was then third in the second semi-final.

Additionally, Sturge finished sixth in the women’s 55-59 100m finals. She clocked 13.68s, a bit slower than her 13.60s time in the semis.

Meanwhile, Cheryl Reyes placed ninth with a 7.93m throw in the women’s 65-69 shot put finals. On day one, she finished ninth in the hammer finals.

Also, TT’s Raymond Smith was ousted in the men’s 60-64 semi-final. He was the 13th fastest with a 12.86s clocking.