Kemarley Brown - file

Jamaica's fastest man for 2014, Kemarley Brown, has received a psychological boost leading up to the national championships this weekend where he faces Asafa Powell, a former world record holder and one of the fastest men in history over the 100 metres.

He was this week named the Athlete of the Month and Athlete of the Year by the California Community College Athletic Association (CCCAA).

Brown who attended Merritt College in Oakland, California, claimed the CCCCAA Champi-onships 100-metre title in May just days before he graduated with an Associate's Degree in Psychology. It was the fastest time ever run by an athlete from his school.

Brown, a former student of St Elizabeth Technical, clocked what was for 24 hours a world-leading 9.93 seconds to claim the sprint CCCAA sprint title title before going on to take the 200 metre title as well. Since that time, only two men - the USA's Justin Gatlin (9.86) and Trinidad and Tobago's Richard Thompson (9.82) - have gone faster. No other Jamaican sprinter has broken 10 seconds all season.

well deserved

The news is being welcomed by Brock Drazen, Brown's coach at Merritt. Drazen, who has been coaching for about a decade, said the award was well deserved for what he believed to be an outstanding season.

"It's a great honour. Out of all the sports programmes in the California Community College including football and basketball, which often overshadow track and field here, Kemarley's incredible season was recognised for what it was," he said.

"I've only coached for 10 years, but it is arguably the best season for a sprinter in the history of community colleges and perhaps as dominating a season even from an NCAA standpoint."

Brown, who has since returned home and is in training, was truly dominant for Merritt College this past season. He opened with a 10.20 run at the Beaver Relays in February and proceeded to post times of 10.29, 10.39, 10.24, 10.22, 10.13, and 10.10 before ending the college season spectacularly with a personal and season best. "