Severe thunderstorms have brought an abrupt halt to day two of the 2026 International Youth Championships in Maryland, forcing organizers to suspend competition following tornado warnings and flash flooding.
Damaging wind gusts and isolated tornadoes swept through the DMV (D.C., Maryland, Virginia) region on Saturday afternoon, putting safety protocols into action at the Prince George's Sports and Learning Centre in Landover.
Before the weather intervened, young athletes from the Bermuda Pacers Track Club delivered a string of impressive performances to book multiple spots in the upcoming finals.
In the boys' events, Kaden Davis caught the eye in the Under-8 100m preliminaries, storming through to the next round as the third-fastest qualifier in a blistering 14.58 seconds. Over in the 9-10 division, Elliott Davidge fell just short of the finals but clocked an excellent 1:08.78 to finish 9th overall in the 400m.
The Pacers' girls also enjoyed a productive day in the sprint heats:
11-12 Division: Gabrielle Saunders enjoyed a stellar double-qualification day, securing 8th place in the 200m prelims (27.59s) and 12th in the 100m (13.61s).
9-10 Division: The club safely advanced two runners in the 100m heats, with Novi Butler (14.67s) and Giselle Reid-Rubaine (14.74s) finishing 10th and 11th respectively.
200m Heats: Reid-Rubaine double-qualified by grabbing 19th spot in the 200m (31.62s), while teammate Sazise Lobese fought hard across both sprint distances, clocking 32.74s in the 200m and 15.85s in the 100m.
Officials are monitoring the weather closely, with updates on the remaining schedule expected once the severe weather tracking across the region clears.
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