Sanchez Smith added to Bermuda’s medal haul at the Carifta Games with a fantastic silver medal late on Sunday night.

Smith fought off the attentions of Zindzele Renwick-Williams, from Barbados, on the final lap to finish runner-up in the boys under-17 3,000 metres.

The 15-year-old was always up with the strong pace, crossing the line in a personal best 9min 22.24sec to grab the second spot on the podium behind Jevaughan Tomlin, from Jamaica, who won in a time of 9:12.49.

Smith is Bermuda’s second medal-winner at the Track and Field Championships in Grenada after Miles Outerbridge stormed home to stun the region and win gold in the under-20 boys 100 metres.

Witnessing the race at Kirani James National Athletic Stadium as Smith overhauled his previous PB of 9:27.70, were members of his family. His father Chris, mother Serena and sister Samira were in the stands to see him secure his first Carifta Games medal.

“Watching Sanchez win a silver medal at Carifta was such a joyous and rewarding moment,” the father said.

“We were elated to see him achieve the goal that he had set for himself of winning a medal at Carifta. He has sacrificed so much for this and to see him enjoying the rewards of all his hard work is an amazing feeling.

“We were in the stands cheering him on as he battled for his spot. It was nerve-racking to watch the back and forth as he jostled for his position. It made for a thrilling and high emotion race for us watching.

“His little sister Samira lost her voice because she was screaming so much for him. She is his biggest supporter and she said that she was not nervous because she knew that he could do it.

“We were sitting next to a big group of supporters from Barbados. We had become friendly over the last few days of sitting next to each other so when the race came down to Sanchez and the athlete from Barbados, we were all going crazy cheering for our respective countries. We congratulated each other for a well-fought race from our athletes.

“As his parents, we are filled with pride for our son. Watching him go from a rambunctious little boy filled with endless energy to a skilled and poised athlete has been an amazing transformation to witness.”

The family expressed their appreciation to the Bermuda National Athletics Association, together with the coaches for the part they played in their son’s success.

“Thank you to his coaches that prepared him for this competition,” the family said.

“Thank you to BNAA for giving him this opportunity to compete at Carifta. Thank you to the BNAA coaching staff for supporting him through this experience and thank you to the BNAA administrative staff for taking great care of him and all the athletes during this trip.

“Thank you to all his family, friends and supporters here and back home. This would not have been possible without this village of people around him.”

Wayne Bean, Smith’s athletics coach, highlighted the collaboration he did with triathlon mentor Alex Waldauer.

“I have been coaching Sanchez for about five years,” Bean said.

“He’s always been a well-behaved and focused athlete. He has been working really hard since his disappointment at the last Carifta, when he finished sixth.

“Sanchez is a triathlete so because of that I let him cycle and swim and some, if not most of his running with his triathlon coach, Alex Waldauer.

“For too long, coaches have been somewhat selfish when it comes to athletes, we have lost a lot of our top athletes to other sports.

“That’s why I took a village approach, Sanchez loves triathlon but always loves to run, which was his strongest discipline. I have always said long runs are what was going to get on the podium at Carifta with a blend of triathlon training.

“Distance training and track repeats training, Sanchez is the product of that. So I want to congratulate Sanchez, his parents and coach Alex for this achievement.”

Waldauer feels that this is only the beginning for the young athlete, who already boasts of an individual gold at the Carifta Triathlon and Aquathlon Championships.

“I’ve been working with Sanchez for just over a year now, so watching him cross the finish line in second place was incredibly rewarding — not just for me as a coach, but especially for him as an athlete who’s had a mix of results over the past year,” Waldauer said.

“We’ve had our tough days, so to see that hard work come together in this performance feels like a real breakthrough. I’m also really happy for his support system — his mum and dad have been there through every high and low, the Smiths are a truly strong and committed family unit.

“Achieving a personal best at his main race gives us valuable insight into what’s working and how we can keep building from here. The most exciting part? He’s only just getting started.”

DeVon Bean, one of Smith’s early coaches, watched with pride as he bagged the medal.

“What I witnessed on Sunday night made me proud that I was there at the beginning of his running career,” Bean said.

“Sanchez was quite young when his parents approached me. His dad Chris approached me and told me that he had a son who loves running.

“At that time I was training six women and doing a boot camp. On certain days we did running training, so Sanchez used to come and join the ladies and I was hesitant because he was young and I wasn’t used to training young athletes.

“I took the bit in my mouth and ran with it, and that was the launch of his running career.

“You could tell his passion for winning because sometimes when the ladies would win, he used to cry often and we had to clap him in.

“Sometimes as coaches you take on athletes and you have no clue what’s in store down the road.

“I’m happy to witness his physical maturity, but more importantly, how much he has matured mentally, so he deserves that silver medal and much more.”