High jumper Nathan King of the Lodge School soared to a new personal best of 1.97m to win the Under-20 boys’ high jump on day two of the 2026 Dasani BSSAC finals at the Usain Bolt Sports Complex.
Nathan King of the Lodge School soaring to victory in the Under 20 Boys’ High jump. (Photo Credit: Nathan Goddard-McCarthy)
Unfortunately for King, who represented Barbados at last year’s CARIFTA Games, while his winning leap surpassed the qualifying standard of 1.95m for this year’s regional championships, it came after the cut off time, with the Athletics Association of Barbados having already named its team.
At the 2025 CARIFTA Games in Trinidad and Tobago, he narrowly missed out on a bronze medal after finishing fourth overall in the Under-20 boys’ high jump with a leap of 1.90m.
Speaking to Barbados TODAY after his victory, King mentioned having setbacks from an injury he sustained in January when the track and field season began.
“I got an injury around January so I took a break until February. Then I started back and tried to get back my rhythm. It was hard at first, because I had a lot of knee problems but I went to physio, had it treated and came back out and competed,” he explained.
Despite missing out on this year’s CARIFTA team, King said he hopes to attain a scholarship.
St George Secondary’s Shamari Greenidge-Lewis had undoubtedly the best performance of the day.
Shamari Greenidge-Lewis of St George Secondary reset the Under 20 Boys’ 400m record. (Photo Credit: Nathan Goddard-McCarthy)
Competing in the Under-20 Boys’ 400m, Greenidge-Lewis stormed across the line in 46.26 seconds to erase Jonathan Jones’ record of 46.80, which was set back in 2018.
Greenidge-Lewis was elated with the time, which he celebrated by doing a victory run down the homestretch to the crowd’s approval.
“It feels great, I just won the race of my life…I’m just glad that I broke the record and got a gold medal this year. From yesterday when I ran 47.30, I eased up about 20 metres out and I knew then that I could beat it,” he said.
On Friday’s final day he will contest the 800m and Open Boys’ 4x400m relay.
Greenidge-Lewis gave kudos to his Extreme Velocity coaches Juquan Beckles and Glen Williams.
“My coaches always believe in me, I have some of the best coaches in Barbados right now and I know that once I listen and I execute my race I know that I will get it done,” he said.
Greenidge-Lewis’ time is also a qualifier for the World U20 Championships and he hopes to medal there as well. Last year at the CARIFTA Games, he was a part of the Under-20 Boys’ 4x400m and mixed 4x400m relay teams, which placed fourth in both events
(Nathan Goddard-McCarthy)
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