Virgin Islands Track and Field (VITF) team members Michelle Smith and Sofia Swindell represented the Virgin Islands in the Pan American Under-20 Games in Puerto Rico from Aug. 4 – 6. Michelle Smith, the newly crowned NACAC U18 Champion and record holder in both the 400m hurdles and 800m, and silver medalist in the 100m hurdles, competed in the 400m hurdles on Friday, Aug. 4. Smith won a silver medal for the Virgin Islands in the 400m hurdles in a time of 57.99.
She returned to Montverde Academy to start her senior high school year. Smith will take a well-deserved break before starting her training for the Pan Am Games, which will be held from Oct. 20 to Nov. 5, in Santiago, Chile.
Sofia Swindell, the NACAC U18 100m hurdles bronze medalist, competed in the 100m hurdles on Saturday, Aug. 5 and the 200m on Aug. 6.
In the prelims of the 100m hurdles, Swindell placed 3rd in her heat, which automatically qualified her for the finals with a time of 14.48. In the final that was held the same day, Sofia finished overall with a time of 14.62
Sofia Swindell (lane 8)
On the third day of competition, she ran the 200m prelim for the Virgin Islands in a time of 24.89; her 2nd place finish in her heat qualified her automatically for the final.
In the final Swindell ran a personal record of 24.39 and placed 6th overall.
She is set to start her junior year of high school at the Lawrenceville School in New Jersey.
In another upcoming competition for the Virgin Islands Track and Field Federation, Virgin Islands Track and Field team member Malique Smith will compete for the Virgin Islands in the World Championships, which will be held from Aug. 16 – 28 in Budapest, Hungary.
For more information, see the Virgin Islands Track and Field website https://vitrackandfield.com/
To register with the Track and Field Federation please go to: https://vitrackandfield.com/registration/
