May 10 2008
Ernest, Spencer Just Miss National Marks

Levern Spencer demonstrated her Olympic credentials for the second weekend in a row, competing in women's High Jump once again at Spec Towns Track, on the University of Georgia campus in Athens. The previous weekend, Levern had the best height in the world (albeit briefly) clearing 1.92m to win the Specs Town Invitational. This time, she contested the the Bulldog Limited, and with a winning height of 1.93m, the 24-year-old St Lucian came within a whisker of setting a new National Record.

Levern, who started jumping at 1.84m, beat the woman who is the best in the world (1.95m) so far this year. American jumper Chaunte Howard, who competes for Nike, could only manage 1.84, after starting at 1.75 and requiring all three attempts at the next height. Howard, in fact, five months the senior of her St Lucian counterpart, could only manage third. Tisha Waller, who holds the Specs Town venue record of 1.97m (set in 1996), cleared 1.89m on the day for second place.

So, within one centimetre of her National Record, with the Beijing Olympics at hand.
Well off Olympic pace, but comfortably in range of another National Record, however, was Leander Ernest. Also competing Saturday last, at the Kansas Relays in Lawrence, Kansas, the Missouri State sophomore won the 800m run and qualified for the NCAA national collegiate championships. Leander ran tantalisingly close to Augustina Charles' 1999 mark of 2:06.30 last year, coming within three hundredths of a second at her Regional Championships. She's already nearly as close now.
In her first outdoor 800m run of 2008, Leander held back for the better part of two laps, trailing the race leader, Jamaica's Carlene Robinson. But with 150m remaining in the race, the 21-year-old St Lucian found her finishing kick, crossing the line in 2:06.45 for the victory. Her time is the ninth fastest time in the United States this season and tops the Missouri Valley Conference’s performance list. Leander has already twice broken the indoor record for the 800m run.

Finally, also competing this past weekend, Coppin State's Indira Laurencin continues to enjoy a fantastic revival in her track and field fortunes. Indira, a senior, competed at the Morgan State Legacy Meet. She ran 24.26 seconds into a headwind of -2.4 metres per second, finishing third. She then went on to run 54.86 to take second place in the 4oom dash. – T.F