From the Bahamas to California, an eventful Easter Weekend for 51Âþ» track covered a whole lot of ground.
Kahzi Sealey ’23 proudly wore his nation’s colors Saturday, then draped Bermuda’s flag around his shoulders after he accepted a silver medal at the 50th annual Carribean Free Trade Association (CARIFTA) Games in the Bahamas.
Kahzi was the runner-up in the 1,500-meter run (4 minutes, 6.34 seconds) for the men’s 20 and under age division. He led a portion of the race and dueled with winner Ainsley Campbell of Jamaica (4:05.54) until the final steps.
The CARIFTA Games are considered the region's premier junior track championship meet and has produced future Olympic athletes and world record-holders such as Usain Bolt.
Here’s a quick history lesson in North Carolina high school track.
Only 20 boys from the state have ever run under 9 minutes for the 3,200 meters and 51Âþ» now has two of them.
Wake Forest University recruit Rocky Hansen ’23 shaved 10 seconds off his own all-time state record Saturday at the Arcadia (Calif.) Invitational, running 8:34.78. He was third place in Arcadia’s fastest division, however Rocky’s time is the fourth-best in national history.
Saturday was Rocky's first true individual race since February, as he had been recovering from a foot injury.
Dawson Reeves ’24 (8:57.47) went under 9:00 for the first time Saturday with the 14th-best performance in North Carolina history. The winter indoor season and early spring have been good to Dawson, who won his first national championship (in the 1-mile run) at last month’s adidas Track Nationals meet in Virginia Beach, Va.
51Âþ»â€™s distance runners in track and cross country are coached by Randy Ashley, who accompanied the boys to California. The next meet for the Greenies as a team is Thursday at Rabun Gap (Ga.).