Richards the best placed Jamaican at final Diamond League meet

World Championship bronze medallist O’Dayne Richards was the best placed Jamaican at Friday’s Brussels Diamond League in Belgium, the final meet in the series of fourteen.

Richards produced a throw of 21.37 metres to finish second in the Men’s Shot Put which was won by New Zealand’s Tomas Walsh who threw 21.39 metres.

Richards actually took the lead with his first throw of the competition before he was overtaken by Walsh.

Elsewhere on the men’s side, Rasheed Dwyer took third place in the 200 metres, clocking 20.27 seconds behind winner Femi Ogunode of Qatar in 19.97 seconds.

Peter Matthews 45.74 seconds and Rusheen McDonald 47.89 seconds, were third and ninth respectively in the 400 metres won by Trinidad and Tobago’s Renny Quow in 45.29 seconds.

Meanwhile, Jamaica’s World Championship silver medallist Elaine Thompson placed third in the Women’s 200 metres, returning 22.26 seconds in finishing behind winner and World champion Daphne Schippers of the Netherlands in 22.12 seconds.

Fellow Jamaican Sherone Simpson was sixth in 23.12 seconds.

There was also a third place finish for Stephenie McPherson in the 400 metres where she posted 51 seconds flat.

Compatriots Christine Day and Novlene Williams Mills were sixth and seventh respectively in 51.96 seconds and 52.04 seconds.

Kimberly Williams cut the sand at 14.28 metres for fourth in the Triple Jump which went to World Champion Caterine Ibarguen of Colombia with a leap of 14.60 metres.