THE Guyana Police Force (GPF) gleefully regained the Joint Services Championship title by blowing away long-time rivals and defending champions, Guyana Defence Force (GDF), by a massive 202 points over the two days of competition at the Eve Leary Sports Complex ground.
GPF amassed 616 points to comfortably dispose of the other competitors, as GDF stood second with 414 points while the Guyana Fire Service (GFS) were third with 140 points and the Guyana Prison Service (GPS) were fourth with 115 points.
The Police Force started the day on a winning note by being adjudged the best attired team in the march past. They resumed the day in the lead on 231 points ahead of GDF who were just 99 points ahead of GFS (57 points) and GPS (36 points).
GPF were led by champion male and female athletes Ronald Payne and Natasha Alder who finished with a total of 24 and 30 points respectively.
The eventual victors also won seven of the eight contested relays while the army men’s 4x100m team ran a blistering 42.1s to crush the previous record of 43.9s.
New records were set by the GPF as the female 4x100m team ran a time of 52.2s and the male 4x400m team ran 3:23.2s to set new bars.
National distance athlete Dennis Horatio was nothing short of his usual dominant self in his events, as he won the 1500m and 5 000m while playing a major role in the victories the GPF recording in the 4x400m and 1500m medley relays.
GDF’s Quincy Clarke was the fastest male athlete over 100m running 10.4 seconds to defeat team mate Rupert Perry (10.5s) and GPF’s Winston George (10.7s).
Perry returned to win the 200m with a blistering time of 20.8s to set a new record while GPF’s Nadine Rodrigues ran a time of 25.5s to claim the new female 200m record ahead of team mate Leota Bobb.
Rodrigues also won the female 400m but was beaten into second by Bobb in the 100m as Bobb finished with a time of 12.6s.
In the male 400m, GDF’s Patrick King stormed to the finish with a time of 49.3s to create a new record time; King also placed third in the 200m.
Trevor Scotland ran a record time of 1:56.2 seconds in the male 800m for GPF and Dellie Williams was the female 800m victor as the GPF athlete won in a time of 2:32.5s.