Why Do Jamaicans Dominate Penn Relays?

Taken from Wikipedia.

"Herb McKenley entered the first Jamaican high school team into the Penn Relays in 1964; since then, Jamaicans have won more than half the events."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Athletics_in_Jamaica

"While the competition over recent years seems to boil down to Jamaica versus the USA, some argue that the Jamaicans are not more talented than any or most of their counterparts. Climate, they say, is the major contributing factor to Jamaica’s dominance. Their argument is that while most of the North American athletes, especially those in the North East, are training and running indoor meets due to the weather conditions, the Jamaican athletes are training outdoors in tropical climate."

"In Jamaica, track and field is a premier sport, unlike in the USA where it is not even among the top three. And so, Jamaica, with its habit of turning out fast sprinters, proudly accepts the recent nicknames “Sprinting Nation” and “Sprint Capital of The World.” To support this notion, one sportscaster on a major US TV network once remarked that “Jamaica does not replace its sprinters, it reloads them.”

Track and field is an intrinsic part of the Jamaican culture; it is a way of life. So when a Jamaican athlete sets foot on a track, especially in the sprints, the mindset of that athlete is that he or she is the best. With that elevated confidence, their performance can be of the highest standard because they know that the entire nation, as well as Jamaicans abroad, is behind them."

http://www.caribbeantracklife.com/ushighschools/2012/4/21/is-climate-a-factor-in-jamaicas-hs-dominance-at-penns

Jamaican high school champs are early in the season so they are closer to peak form.

Kids compete in high school up to age 19. So they have a year of physical maturity.

Weather. Early spring in the northeast can be nasty, limiting some of the work that can be done. Jamaica has some nice weather for training.

The reasons:

1. The Jamaicans kids are very good.

2. They are on average 1 year older.

3. Late April is the start of outdoor in the U.S. and is peak for Jamaican kids. The end of season U.S. top marks are usually faster than the Penns and faster than the Jamaican performances.

4. Some of best H.S. athletes don't attend, teams from TX and FL for example, traditionally don't attend the Penn Relays.

5. Tradition; imagine a H.S. in the U.S. where every athlete wants to make the track team...thats the situation in Jamaica.

All of these reasons plus Jamaicans don't always attend their local high school but are recruited to schools with programs.

They send a bunch of all star teams.

But the culture and growth in popularity has made Jamaica grow on the elite level.

They foster a development of track athletes mor than the US does.

As one poster mentioned , the week of the Penn Relays is the same time as the state qualifier meet , so all of the top Florida kids don't attend .

Appreciate all the replies. Some I agree with, some I don't. Weather and training cycles may well be a factor, but there are other warm weather competitors. Florida and Texas not competing at a given time doesn't wash though. There are over 15,000 young people competing from all over USA and abroad. Too many for a missing state or two to be a reason. Jamaica is one small island winning half the events???

The focus on T&F in Jamaica is the biggest reason I can come up with so far.

Because they serve beef patties and coco bread! If they ever start serving yams...WATCH OUT!!

If the US cobbled together all-state squads the results would be different.

The one year older thing is also a big deal at the high school level.

Put college freshman in there for the US teams.

Whaaat? wrote:

Weather and training cycles may well be a factor, but there are other warm weather competitors. Florida and Texas not competing at a given time doesn't wash though. There are over 15,000 young people competing from all over USA and abroad. Too many for a missing state or two to be a reason. Jamaica is one small island winning half the events???

Budget costs can be a big reason, particularly for the schools that may not be strong enough to send whole teams or have the money to send individuals. Long Beach Poly always send in a few teams, and I'm not sure with the economic factors are for that community, but why send teams if they are not competitive?

The biggies are that Jamaican high schools have one long buildup to their HS national championship which is usually 1 or 2 weeks before Penn Relays (they are essentially at their peak), the schools recruit quite a bit creating higher caliber teams, and track is a priority as a sport. Meanwhile the best local teams from NY-NJ-PA-MD (a vast majority of the HS athletes at the Penn Relays) have just run a long indoor season culminating in a national championship probably in mid-March. They have 6 weeks to both rest and then train hard for Penn Relays in what is usually a cold wet portion of the year while trying to retain athletes who would prefer to play baseball or lacrosse.

Generally, you have to run 3:15 or better in the AM trials of the HSB 4x4 to make the final; when the weather is nice sometimes this dips to 3:14-3:13. Then you have to replicate it at 5pm with an even faster time as 3:11 is sometimes what it takes to win (record is 3:08). This is a difficult task for any local HS team, and is faster than most state all-time records.

Almost 10 years ago now none other than the city of Camden NJ won the HSB 4x4. Dwight Ruff ran 50.3 in the 400H at 9AM (to win), ran a 47 in the 4x4 trial at noon, then ran another 47 at 5pm in the final. I still don't know how he did it.

Much like the U.S., Jamaicans don’t need dope to run fast. Jamaicans have been winning Olympic medals since the 1940s, which tells you they have had great H.S. athletes for a long time as well. Sprinting is as much a part of Jamaican culture as reggae music and jerk chicken. The biggest national celebration in Jamaica is Champs Week a.k.a. “Champs”. This is the Jamaican H.S. track & field championships; there is absolutely no H.S. event in the U.S. and probably the world that compares to it. Champs has gotten so big that it’s basically a national holiday, if gets coverage by all of the Jamaican national media and some international media as well. Kids start sprinting at a young age, first they want to represent their school in Champs and the Penn Relays and hopefully emulate their heroes like Usain Bolt. Like the athletes, Jamaican H.S. coaches are very good as well, since their college system is very weak and with only 2-3 professional teams, there aren’t a lot coaching opportunities beyond H.S., therefore the H.S. coaches tend to stay at the same H.S. for a long time. Jamaican H.S. kids are well coached, they train hard and when they come to the Penn Relays, they are ready to compete.

With all of that said, the Penn Relays had problems with some Jamaican H.S., up until a few years ago with overage athletes, athletes that should be academically ineligible and athletes representing a school that they did attend, etc. As far as I know, Dave Johnson the Penn Relays director have addressed those problems. There have been 2 Jamaican H.S. athletes I was suspicious of doping, based on a combination of things, but by and large, I don’t think Jamaican H.S. athletes use PED and I seriously doubt drugs have played a part in their Penn Relays success. Even if you factor out all of the advantages that have been mentioned, Jamaican H.S. kids are very good and would still be successful at the Penn Relays.

On the senior level, their success is another story; I am almost certain that the use of PED is taking place. Based on a mountain of anecdotal evidence and several statistical anomalies that line up with what we saw with the Eastern Bloc athletes of the 1980s and the Chinese swimmers and runners of the 1990s. I personally believe doping is widespread among Jamaican ‘senior’ athletes. Unfortunately for the rest of the world Jamaica only has 3 airports that can handle commercial flights, which means Jamaican athletes and coaches know when testers are coming before they board their flights. Also, Jamaica only established a certified drug testing a program a couple of years ago and since Jamaica is a small island, many people are related to each other and/or have small degrees of separation…that’s like asking the fox to guard the chicken coop. Jamaicans fight with other, but Jamaicans don’t tell on Jamaicans to non-Jamaicans, especially when there is life changing amounts of money involved and national pride is at stake. This is very similar to what you see with African age-cheating, athletes in-country know it goes on, but no one is willing to talk about it. Jamaica has come under increased scrutiny from several organization like the IOC, IAAF, USADA and WADA and there is a major effort to address the ‘perceived’ problem. Please note that there is a difference between my personal opinion and having a suspicion, versus out-and-out accusing someone of doping; track & field athletes work too hard to be falsely accused of something based on an opinion, suspicions or priori knowledge. With that said, I have no empirical or evidencery knowledge of systemic or individual’s use of PEDs among Jamaican athletes.

Only in the sprints.

Too lazy to train for running or skill events.

Hookem wrote:

Only in the sprints.

Too lazy to train for running or skill events.

???

Anyways, as for the reasons, TrackCoach already hit all the major points.

Firstly, when someone takes as much time and effort to type as much as you did, I have to say thanks. So, thanks.

Now, you've made it clear that you believe on a Junior level, Jamaican athletes perform on a very high level without PEDs. They are also well coached and train hard, etc. You also spoke of the Olympic/medal history dating back to the forties. I must admit then, it truly puzzles me that you are accusing them of widespread doping on a senior level. You even make comparisons to East Germany and China???

If they excel as juniors and are immersed in a culture that nurtures and fosters the sport, why would this potential not manifest itself on even greater levels when they mature? The very fact that they are dominating on a junior level leads me to think that it is only natural for them to do what they are doing now. They planted the seeds a long time ago and now the flowers are blooming. If you use Usain Bolt as an example, saying he excelled as a junior is an understatement. So why would he need or better yet, risk PED usage today? As I see it, Bolt is a PED user's worst nightmare.

More to come... it's getting late.

They win so many Penn Relays titles because they have a bunch of track and field magnet schools that just suck up all the talent from Jamaica and around the Caribbean, while they're mostly competing against public schools from a three state area.

I might remind you that the best high school sprinter in Jamaica this year was Delano Williams, who's from Turks and Caicos.

If they sent every single one of the top high schools in the US to Penn, it would look much different.

Factt wrote:

They win so many Penn Relays titles because they have a bunch of track and field magnet schools that just suck up all the talent from Jamaica and around the Caribbean, while they're mostly competing against public schools from a three state area.

I might remind you that the best high school sprinter in Jamaica this year was Delano Williams, who's from Turks and Caicos.

If they sent every single one of the top high schools in the US to Penn, it would look much different.

If you take a look at the Penn Relay rosters, you will see that there are MANY schools competing from all over the USA. I don't know how the situation has changed since the Bolt effect but we must remember that the article was written in 1989. There were no "track and field magnet schools" back then and I doubt there are now. I concede that as of late, Jamaica has likely become a magnet of sorts due to their victories but not sure if that's on a high school level vs Pro. I think MVP and Racers probably have a line out the door.

How many schools from Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, and Florida?

On the senior level, their success is another story; I am almost certain that the use of PED is taking place. Based on a mountain of anecdotal evidence and several statistical anomalies that line up with what we saw with the Eastern Bloc athletes of the 1980s and the Chinese swimmers and runners of the 1990s. I personally believe doping is widespread among Jamaican ‘senior’ athletes. Unfortunately for the rest of the world Jamaica only has 3 airports that can handle commercial flights, which means Jamaican athletes and coaches know when testers are coming before they board their flights. Also, Jamaica only established a certified drug testing a program a couple of years ago and since Jamaica is a small island, many people are related to each other and/or have small degrees of separation…that’s like asking the fox to guard the chicken coop. Jamaicans fight with other, but Jamaicans don’t tell on Jamaicans to non-Jamaicans, especially when there is life changing amounts of money involved and national pride is at stake. This is very similar to what you see with African age-cheating, athletes in-country know it goes on, but no one is willing to talk about it. Jamaica has come under increased scrutiny from several organization like the IOC, IAAF, USADA and WADA and there is a major effort to address the ‘perceived’ problem. Please note that there is a difference between my personal opinion and having a suspicion, versus out-and-out accusing someone of doping; track & field athletes work too hard to be falsely accused of something based on an opinion, suspicions or priori knowledge. With that said, I have no empirical or evidencery knowledge of systemic or individual’s use of PEDs among Jamaican athletes.

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The argument about Jamaica having only 3 airports is lame mainly because you do not need a VISA to enter Jamaica if you come from the USA or any Commonwealth country (which means that any middle-aged Westerner can enter that country as a "tourist"...)

Secondly, let's imagine a big country with many commercial airports spread across the territory, do you really believe that the testers from far away would land anywhere? Do you think that testers who would check athletes living in Beijing would land in Shangai ?? Of course No, and since even the biggest cities in the World have rarely more than 3 airports (jamaica is a very small island)...

Lastly, let's imagine that your theory is right. If an athlete has his "levels" too high, which would need several days to get them back to normal, his only way to escape a positive would be to "miss" the testers. And that this is called a no-show and put you automatically in the "suspect" list (three strikes and your out).

That being said, there are indeed statistical evidence that Jamican could indeed be loaded with PED...