Four Bermuda athletes reached Carifta Games qualifying standards during the Tokio Millennium track meet at the National Stadium at the weekend.

Ashley Irby qualified in the under-18 girls’ 1,500 metres after posting a time of 5min 01sec, finishing well under the standard of 5:02.

Sakari Famous reached the under-18 girls’ high jump standard of 1.55 metres with a leap of 1.70.

She won Bermuda’s only medal last year in Grenada when she took the bronze with a leap of 1.77.

Two other high jumpers also achieved qualifying standards, with Elisha Darrell leaping 2.05 and Kevin Miller 2.00 in the under-20 men’s event. The qualifying standard was 1.95.

Donna Raynor, the Bermuda National Athletics Association, president, said that she expects several other athletes to meet the standard for the Carifta Games, which will be held in Curaçao from April 15 to 17.

“We have no doubt that we will have a few more athletes reach the standard with Tiara DeRosa [discus], who just recently joined Shaw University in North Carolina, on a full athletics scholarship, while Dyjmon Reid [sprinter] is studying overseas,” Raynor said.

“We also have local athletes like Stephan Dill, Deneo Brangman and Zekiah Lewis, to name a few, who we feel will make up the team. We are also hoping to have a few men and women’s relay teams this year.

“We began our competition for these Carifta athletes earlier than normal this year and are hoping to reap the benefits of this strategy.”

A young and largely inexperienced Bermuda team returned with just the one medal from the Carifta Games in Granada last year, with Famous reaching the podium in the under-18 girls’ category.

Bermuda had several personal bests, however, including Lynsey Palmer in the 3,000, Elisha Darrell in the high jump, as well as Reid and Stephan Dill in the 100.

At the 2015 Games in St Kitts, Bermuda’s 12-member team won three medals with Kyrah Scraders clinching a silver and bronze in the under-20 girls’ 800 and 1,500 while Famous again won bronze in the under-18 high jump.

Bermuda’s athletes also turned in several personal bests and season bests with Keisha Miller, in her first Carifta Games, reaching the long jump final with a PB, while Michaiah Robinson achieved a PB in the 800.