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From:TheBahamasWeekly.com Sports
Hope Botanical Gardens came alive on Sunday, April 14, 2019, as the ninth staging of the Everyone’s A Winner/Running Events 5K & 10K ended in superb fashion, with 2,000 medals awarded to race participants. The event, orchestrated by Running Events Jamaica, included runners and walkers who competed for the top spots in the 10K Run, 5K Run & Walk, 5K Stroller and 3K Run. The 10K which began on the well-known Palm Drive, Hope Gardens, saw Henry Thomas of UTC Steppas cruising across the finish line to claim his sixth win for 2019 in just under 35 minutes. Taffawa Dunchie of National Baking Company finished the race in 36:52 ahead of Kosiani Dunkley who finished third in 37:04. Similarly, Llori Sharpe, Jozanne Harris of Jamdammers and Kemi Igbon representing Pacers Running Club were the top female finishers in the 10K Run clocking 42:42, 47:40, and 47:44, respectively. Thomas stated that, “The race was a pretty good one. It’s always good to come out and support and give back in any way we can. I’ve always been doing 10K on this route and this win is actually my sixth since the start of the year and so I just came out to enjoy myself and clock a better time than I did last year.”
The 5K Run which began shortly after the 10K resulted in Kemar Leslie of team Rainforest finishing first among the men in a time of 16:45, while Horace Burey of Island Smiles clocked 17:43 ahead of third place Lucan Banton who completed the run in 18:25. Not to be left out, Olivia McKoy representing Olivia’s Athletes was the fastest female finisher recording a time of 21:55. Annakay Edwards finished second in 23:55 and Aileen Corrigan of Jamdammers secured third place in a time of 24:06. “Today’s race was a good one. I got the chance to execute the race as I had planned. I started on a relaxed pace and pushed once I got midway and at the end, I pushed even harder. We went over a steep hill along the race route but once I hit I knew I had the race under control. The race is a good initiative and the Bible tells us that we must support those in need and we came here to do just that,” said Leslie. The day’s event proceeded with the 5K Walk where the top male and female finishers completed the race in less than 40 minutes. Lenworth Hunter clocked 28:39 just to finish ahead of O’Shea Morgan of Shizzlefit who finished in 29:59 and Gosford Lawrence who clocked 30:04. The top three female finishers were Anna-Kay Swaby who clocked 30:42, Thanesha Harrison and Keisha Baugh-Miller who finished the walk in 35:57 and 36:39, respectively.
Next up was the 3K Run that led to victory for Russel Porter who completed the run in 14:54 behind first-place finisher Daniel Garvey, School for the Blind, finishing in 13:45 and ahead of Tevin Blake, also from School for the Blind, who clocked 16:08. Abigail Corrigan was the first female 3K finisher recording a 18:59 finishing time while Ayumi Hayashi came in second in 21:04 and Natsumi Nagamura placed third in 21:23. The day’s event concluded with custom designed, multi-colored souvenir medals being presented to the first 2,000 persons crossing the finish line, in addition to trophies awarded to the overall first, second and third place male and female finishers in the 10K Run, 5K Walk & Run and the 3K Run. Additionally, Damaine Riley, Nicola Anderson and Kimoy Davis received prizes for claiming the top three spots in the Jamaica Moves' Top VIP (Visually Impaired Persons) & Guide Duo category. The largest participating team, Ministry Of Health, and the first finishers for the 5K Stroller event, overall male Latin Edwards, and female, Sanya Goffe, were also awarded. The ninth staging of the Everyone’s A Winner/Running Events 5K & 10K continues to educate, empower and enrich the lives of the blind and visually impaired, as proceeds from the Run will be donated to the scholarship fund at the Jamaica Society for the Blind. “I would like to congratulate each runner for coming across the finish line and making the 2019 staging of the Run a complete success,” said race director Alfred “Frano” Francis. “We thank all participants, sponsors, volunteers and the many others who remain dedicated to helping us change one life at a time,” noted Alfred “Frano” Francis, race Director at Running Events Jamaica. With preparations already underway for the 10th staging of the event, Francis hinted that, “Running Events has acquired new equipment and we are looking forward to doing 5K’s where we have six timing points along the race route. We are putting this system in place so race participants can track themselves to see where their pace has increased and where it has decreased.”
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