UK Track & Field’s Saunders 21st in LJ at World Championships

Sha’Keela Saunders – wrapping up a senior season which saw her crowned NCAA indoor long jump champion – placed 21st and did not advance in the women’s long jump qualifying round at the IAAF World Championships on Wednesday.
 
With the entire field unable to reach the 21’11.75”/6.70m qualifying mark in some measure due to the cold, rainy conditions over London on Wednesday night, Saunders’s best mark was 20’9″/6.32m on her second of three attempts.
The World Championships served in some form as a bookend on a banner senior season for Saunders. She claimed the NCAA and Southeastern Conference indoor long jump championships, and then qualified for her first major international championship – these World Championships – after near misses at the United States trials the two seasons prior.
Saunders could still compete at the remaining meetings on the European Diamond League circuit in the coming weeks.
On Thursday, Kori Carter – who serves as a volunteer assistant coach on the Kentucky track and field staff and trains under UK head coach Edrick Floréal’s tutelage having competed collegiately for Stanford – will run in the world 400m hurdles final.
She continued the string of world-class performances by the talented pool of professionals who train at the UK track on Tuesday.
 
The United States bronze medalist advanced to the women’s 400-meter hurdles final, while UK Class of 2015 alumna Leah Nugent – a finalist at the Olympic Games representing Jamaica a year ago – was knocked out of the Championships on Monday.
Carter placed a comfortable second in the first of three semifinal heats, running a time of 54.92Q – fourth fastest of the finalists.
 
The Floréal pupil will run out of lane nine (heat winners are awarded more central lanes) in the final at 4:35 p.m. ET on Thursday.
Nugent placed sixth in heat one with a time of 56.19, 14th overall – and 0.46 seconds off the last non-automatic qualifying time.
 
UK Class of 2015 alumna Kendra Harrison, who like her training partner Omar McLeod enters these World Championships as favorite, will begin her program on Friday in the 100m hurdles heats.
 
Kayelle Clarke – who ran the third leg of UK’s NCAA Champion 4x100m relay team in June – made her World Championships debut for Trinidad and Tobago running a time of 23.75 in the 200m heats. She placed sixth in heat four, 35th overall, and did not advance. Clarke is also in T&T’s 4x100m relay pool, and that event will be contested over the final weekend.
Jamaican Arkansas alumnus, now UK volunteer assistant, Omar McLeod’s 110m hurdles gold from Monday highlighted an eventful first four days of the IAAF World Championships for Kentucky Track and Field alumni and staff members.
McLeod could feature in the 4x100m pool for Jamaica over the weekend.
 

 
—
The most up-to-date coverage of the UK track and field program is available via @KentuckyTrack handles on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
 
‑ GO CATS –
Jake Most