Hamilton Wins NACAC Under-23 Title

Miramar, Fla. – Three-time Big 12 champion and two-time All-America high jumper Paul Hamilton continued his success in 2010 on Sunday with a meet title at the NACAC Under-23 Track and Field Championships in Miramar, Fla.

 

In late June, Hamilton and Husker teammate Chris Phipps were chosen to represent Team USA at the meet which consisted of teams from 32 IAAF member nations in North America, Central America and the Caribbean Athletic Association.

 

Hamilton led a 1-2 finish in the men’s high jump, as he was followed by Ole Miss’ Ricky Robertson. The two Americans matched each other jump for jump throughout the day and were forced into a jump-off following clearances by each at 7-3 3/4, a mark that matched Hamilton’s personal best from this season’s NCAA and USA Championships.

 

The duo started at 7-4 1/2, but both failed to clear and the bar dropped back to 7-3 3/4, where Hamilton was the only one to clear, giving him the meet title. The two American jumpers were the only athletes in the field to clear seven feet, with Jamal Wilson of the Bahamas taking third-place honors with a jump of 6-11 3/4.

 

Phipps, a two-time All-America long jumper, and Florida’s Christian Taylor swept the long jump for Team USA with Taylor clearing 25-8 and Phipps jumping 25-7 1/4. Phipps’ runner-up finish comes less than two weeks after he finished third at the USA Championships with a personal-best leap of 26-7 3/4 on Sunday, June 27.

 

The NACAC Athletic Association's U23 Championships are held every two years in one of the 32 member nations. The 2008 NACAC Under-23 Track and Field Championships were held in Toluca, Mexico, where Team USA dominated with 62 medals: 28 gold, 26 silver and 8 bronze.