April 1, 2013

NASSAU, Bahamas – Junior high jumper Jeannelle Scheper set a new Caribbean Junior Championships (CARIFTA) record on her way to a gold medal at the 42nd CARIFTA Games on Monday afternoon. The Gamecock was representing her native country of St. Lucia at the Thomas A. Robinson Stadium in Nassau, Bahamas.

After claiming bronze in her three previous CARIFTA appearances, Scheper broke through to secure gold with a clearance of 6-01 ½ (1.87m), breaking fellow St. Lucian Lavern Spencer’s 2003 CARIFTA record of 6-01 ¼ (1.86m). Scheper already holds the South Carolina indoor and Caribbean junior record at 6-03 ¼ (1.91m).

Scheper bested the second and third place finishers by two bars. Once victory was secured, she took three cracks at a would-be new PR and IAAF World Championship provisional qualifying mark at 6-03 ½ (1.92m), but was unable to clear.

Last summer, Scheper won her first international gold medal as she took top honors at the 2012 Central American and Caribbean Athletic Confederation (CACAC) Games. The three-time All-American won silver at the 2013 NCAA Indoor Championships in March.

This was the 18-year-old’s final year of eligibility for the CARIFTA games as it is an under-20 competition. Scheper was one of two female athletes that represented St. Lucia at the event.

Twenty-six Caribbean Island countries took part in the 2013 CARIFTA Games that spread over three days of the Easter weekend.