Long Jump
The competitors in this competition are at all different points in their track and field careers. Aeneas Reed Jr. has documented long jumps on his athlete profile since he was 10 years old, Marzeion Jones picked up the sport just this year and ever week gets a little better, Nate Lovelace is a FRESHMAN and comes in as the 3rd seed with a jump of 22-7, and don't forget about David Johnson further down the seedings who has a documented 23 foot jump from earlier this season as well. That is what it is going to take to win this tomorrow though: 23+ if not 24. The team implications are also important for the likes of Memphis Central's Dohnovon Hunt. He has a head to head victory over Aeneas at the Houston Track Classic and if the Warriors are going to claim a team title at the end of the night, it starts with him at the beginning of the day. Be on the lookout as I may go Instagram Live from the final jumps of this competition.
Short Sprints
Like the girls 400, the boys short sprints is an event category that showcases high caliber sprinters from every corner of the state that have never raced each other until now. Christian Langlois, Jordan Ware, and Javon Burke will line up twice on Thursday for the first time this season. I have seen each sprinter in person this year but at different stages in the season and under different wind conditions so it's very hard to make a prediction beyond just looking at the times. The only prediction I will make is I don't think the same person wins both events. Each runner has a different schedule of events for the day so while the 100 may be an even playing field by the time the 200 rolls around the heat of the day may have worn more on one over the others. Nevertheless, we're in a for a treat when the gun fires for these events. Below are links that will jump to each of the highlighted competitors running a 200m open this season:
Christian Langlois - Section 1 Championships
Jordan Ware - Houston Track Classic
Javon Burke - Section 3 Championships