‘We will be ready’

Coach Garth Smythe says he is pleased with the progress of Under-20 Championships 200-metres bronze and 4x100m gold medallist Shanoya Douglas so far this season, as the talented teenager continues her steady development at Holland High School.

Douglas, 18, made her seasonal debut last week at the Tyser Mills Classic at GC Foster College, where she competed in the 800 metres. It was her first appearance since transferring to Holland High School in September from Muschett High School.

Douglas moved to Holland alongside Smythe, his son Johan Ramaldo, and three other athletes. Both Douglas and Johan Ramaldo are sixth-form students and will be eligible to compete at next year’s ISSA/GraceKennedy Boys and Girls’ Athletics Championships (Champs). Douglas captured the Class Two sprint double at Champs in March.

Smythe said Douglas’s early-season outings are carefully being managed as part of a long-term plan.

“I am very pleased where I want her to be at this point because she was running the 800 metres, but the instructions were for her to only run 600 metres and she did that. We are in for a very long season, and so we are measuring everything that we are doing to ensure that we get a balance,” Smythe said.

He added that with an eye on the future the focus extends well beyond the current season.

“What we are doing now is just taking things one step at a time because it is World Under-20 in 2026, and so our focus is on that. If it is God’s will, then other major meets will fall into place as well,” he noted.

While Holland High School may not have the numbers to challenge for the Champs title, Smythe noted his team can still make a strong impact.

“We can’t win Champs because Holland High School doesn’t have the numbers to win Champs, but we are going there to make some noise and to put Holland on the map. So far, so good because the administrative staff, holistically, have been supporting us, and so despite the setback of Hurricane Melissa, we will be ready,” he said.

Smythe also reflected on the challenges faced following the passage of Category 5 Hurricane Melissa which devastated the western end of the island on October 28, stating that the disruptions ultimately helped solidify the core of his group.

“I think that these setbacks come as a blessing for us, but we lost some kids after the hurricane because there are some kids that started training with us in September and after the hurricane they didn’t return,” he said.

“So we have moved on with the ones that are in training, and they have been working very hard, and so I am pleased about that.”