Distinguished Track and Field coach Donald Hawthorne is among some 15 track and field coaches to be honored for long and distinguished service, by the Jamaica Track and Field Coaches Association on November 22. 

The former St Jago High School Track Coach is responsible for guiding athletes such as Yohan Blake, Nickel Ashmeade, Nathan Allen and Raheem Chambers in the early stages of their respective careers.  

Hawthorne will be among three coaches who will receive the lifetime award. 

The others are Leo Brown, and Rohan Oliver.  

Meanwhile, awards will be presented to track and field coaches for long and distinguished service to the nation on the heels of a very successful 2025 athletics season at both the Junior and Senior levels.  

The awards will be in 5 categories: Silver for coaches who have served between 20 and 25 years, ……….gold for those who have given the sport 26 to 30 years, …platinum for those serving 30-40 years,…….. lifetime award over 40 years of coaching service and the Master Coach Award. 

The platinum awardees are : Marlene Hawthorne, Richard Johnson and Rayon Patterson. 

The gold awardees are : Dave Anderson, Shawn Cunningham, Patrick Dawson, Michael Mcintosh, Aston Tomlin , while Kevin Brown, Dwight Jones, Ricardo Williams, and Marlon Wilkie will be the silver awardees. 

The awards ceremony will be held under the Theme “Sustainability of athletics through the development of coaches”