New and improved Wesley Powell Meet takes place on Saturday at the 12th staging of the Wesley Powell Invitational Track and Field Meet at the Excelsior High School nine-lane track

BY HURBUN WILLIAMS Observer writer  Sunday, December 07, 2014    

A dual-photo finish system is among new technologies to be introduced at the 12th staging of the Wesley Powell Invitational Track and Field Meet at the Excelsior High School nine-lane track next Saturday.

A pleased Dr Ernest Madu (right) of the Heart Institue of the
 Caribbean hands over a symbolic cheque to principal of
Excelsior High School, Denroy Bromfield (left) last Wednesday
for the staging of the 12th Wesley Powell Heart Institute-sponsored
 Track And Field Meet scheduled at the school grounds
 on Saturday. Also pictured is the meet committee chairman,
Desmond Shakespeare. (PHOTO: JOSEPH WELLINGTON)

The introduction of the photo-finish system is an attempt to make the results of the meet more readily available, which will allow the finish judges to make swifter determinations of the final placings and, in turn, pass this information to the media, coaches and all parties concerned.

To further facilitate the process, a Wi-Fi hot spot will be temporarily established so that results can be transmitted straight to relevant devices.

Sponsored by the Heart Institute of the Caribbean, the meet was inaugurated in 1998 to honour the memory of the late founder of Excelsior, Aston Wesley Powell.

The announcement was made at a press launch at the auditorium at Excesior High School recently.

The Wesley Powell Invitational, from its humble beginning with 21 schools participating that brought more than 700 athletes from both rural and urban areas, has grown steadily throughout the years. Setting a particular and peculiar standard, the meet has now become a permanent fixture on the Jamaica Athletics Administrative Association calendar and is the first stop for several schools as they seek to qualify for the ISSA Boys' and Girls' Championship. more