NACAC Senior Championships Bring A Final Close-To-Home Opportunity To Compete On Big Stage

By Doug Binder, DyeStat Editor

Kara Winger will come full circle this weekend when she represents the United States in the North America, Central America and Caribbean Athletics Association Senior Championships (NACAC) in the Bahamas. 

America's greatest javelin thrower, and the World Championships silver medalist from Oregon22, will represent the the United States for the 18th and final time when she competes Sunday. 

One of the meets that was formative early in her career was the 2006 NACAC U23 Championships in the Dominican Republic. It's where she met Russ Winger, her future husband and coach. 

DYESTAT DISCUSSION EP700 - KARA WINGER

Winger, 36, won the gold medal at the 2015 NACAC Championships in Costa Rica, where her husband Russ also won the discus, and her close friend and training partner Ariana Ince, who is also part of the U.S. team, won the last NACAC javelin title in 2018 in Canada. 

The fourth edition of the NACAC meet will take place at Grand Bahama Stadium. 

"I'm very excited," Winger said. "I kind of forgot about it in the shadow of Worlds. But it was on the radar. Ari and I had talked about it."

Whether its part Bahamas vacation and part business trip, Winger is counting down the final meets of her illustrious career. She has two more European dates planned, plus the possibility Sept. 8 of the Diamond League final. 

Winger is one of three World Championships medalists on the 40-member U.S. roster this weekend, which includes women's hammer gold and bronze medalists, Brooke Andersen and Janee' Kassanavoid. 

Quanesha Burks, the U.S. women's long jump champion, will compete at the NACAC meet after missing a medal in Eugene by one centimter and finishing fourth. She captured the NACAC title in 2015.

The meet brings together some athletics-rich nations, including Jamaica, Canada and a wealth of talent scattered in the Caribbean islands. 

Jamaica's team is led by Shericka Jackson, who won three medals in Eugene (one gold, two silver) and became the second-fastest woman of all time in the 200 meters when she ran 21.45s seconds. She captured NACAC gold in the 200 in 2018.

Shaunae Miller-Uibo, the world champion in the 400 meters, will compete on home soil for the Bahamas. 

The U.S. team includes Rayvon Grey, the national champion in the men's long jump who did not compete at the World Championships because he missed the standard by three centimeters. 

For athletes like Grey and others, the NACAC Open Championships serves as a valuable opportunity to compete internationally and represent Team USA on a smaller scale. In addition, winning a NACAC title provides athletes with the World Athletics Championships qualifying standard for the 2023 global meet in Hungary.

Duncan Hamilton of Montana State, for example, will compete at the NACAC meet after taking fourth at the USATF Outdoor Championships in the men's 3,000-meter steeplechase. He'll be joined on the team by veteran Evan Jager, who was sixth in the World final. 

Additional standouts on the U.S. women's team include Ajee' Wilson, the World Indoor champion in the 800 meters who was eighth in the World Outdoor final, Keturah Orji, the American record holder and sixth-place finisher in the women's triple jump in Eugene, and nine-time U.S. high jump champion Vashti Cunningham.