By Neto Baptiste
Although the ongoing coronavirus pandemic has altered the college plans of national female sprinter Soniya Jones, it has also provided the 18-year-old athlete with an opportunity to sharpen her skills ahead of her new January 1 departure date.
This is according to her coach and father, Evans Jones, who said Soniya should be leaving for Central Arizona a better athlete.
“Preparations have been going pretty well and I must say that Covid has been a blessing also because we get to work on a lot of things. We did some specific work in some specific areas where we were a little weak, so those areas now have been strengthened and so we are ready and looking for her to leave,” he said.
The sprinter, who turns 19 on December 28, holds a personal best on 11.49 seconds in the 100 meters and 24.17 in the 200 meters.
Jones believes that Central Arizona is the best choice for his daughter.
“She will be going to Central Arizona because based on what the mother [Sonia Williams] and I, along with Soniya decided after we had been interviewed, and also what the coaches are offering, we are very much satisfied with that package at this moment,” the coach said.
It was announced in July this year that Soniya was set to leave for college in the USA. The athlete won 100 metres bonze in the Under-17 category of the 2018 Carifta Games held in the Bahamas while she won silver at Grenada’s Whitsuntide Games in 11.94 seconds back in 2019. Soniya was named Junior Sportswomen of the Year in 2017.