The 49^th staging of the prestigious Gibson McCook Relay will have a change of format, where there will be no preliminary heats and only straight finals.

The event to be held on Saturday, February 28, was launched yesterday at the Pegasus Hotel, where they had a Sponsors’ Luncheon and Drawing of events.

Rev Ryan Peralto, Gibson McCook Relays Chair, Entries and Registration Sub Committee, announced the changes to the relay carnival that was started in 1973 and grew into one of the biggest in the region.

“The reduced format, the big thing for us is the number of spectators in the seats. That’s what makes a huge difference in the financial picture for the Gibson McCook Relays,” Peralto explained.

“It all comes down to that, the attendance. We have the sponsor that’s great, which allows us to run the meet, but the spectators are what bring us the real success factor on the financial side. So, we’re hoping for that,” he added.

There will be over 1,500 athletes from 77 schools, institutions and clubs. There will be teams from Barbados and St Kitts and Nevis to compete in the men’s 4×100 and a Team Jamaica Bickle Team from New York for the girls’ 4×400 and 4×800 relays.

This reduced format will see the event start at 4:00 pm instead of in the early morning with heats. There will be 42 events of relays and field events, plus the 60m dash for men’s and women’s.

There will be a prize money of $75,000 for every record broken.