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WITH four more preliminary rounds of Diamond League events to go before the grand finals in Zurich, Switzerland, August 27-28, 17 Jamaicans are in strong positions to qualify for the finals.

Shanieka Ricketts, with 23 points, leads the women's triple jump standings. She is among nine Jamaican females currently positioned to advance to the finals. Ricketts has secured two wins and a second-place finish, with victories in Doha (a wind-aided 14.72m), Rome (season-best 14.64m), and a runner-up finish in Oslo (14.57m).

Sprint hurdler Danielle Williams and 400m hurdler Andrenette Knight are the next best-placed Jamaicans, both sitting in fourth in their respective events. Williams, the defending World champion in the women's 100m hurdles, has 15 points, following a win in Xiamen and a second-place finish in Shaoxing. Knight has 19 points in the 400m hurdles after placing second in Rabat, winning in Rome with a season-best 53.87, and finishing fifth in Monaco.

Ackera Nugent is fifth in the 100m hurdles with 13 points, after placing second in Stockholm and third in Paris.

Next in line among the Jamaican females is new national 100m champion Tina Clayton, who sits in sixth with 13 points after finishing third in Rabat and second in Monaco.

National 400m hurdles champion Rushell Clayton, Shericka Jackson, Natoya Goule-Toppin, and Ackelia Smith are all in seventh position in their respective events. Clayton has earned 11 points in the 400m hurdles, following a third-place finish in Rabat, and fourth and third in Paris.

In her only 200m race this season, defending World champion Jackson placed second in Xiamen, earning seven points. Goule-Toppin has collected 15 points in the women's 800m after finishing fifth in Xiamen and fourth in Shaoxing.

Smith joins Ricketts as the other Jamaican field event female currently in the top eight, after finishing sixth at the Prefontaine Classic in Eugene to earn three points.

Breakout male athlete of the season, Jordan Scott, leads eight Jamaican men in the top eight. He currently tops the men's triple jump with 31 points, after a second-place finish in Shaoxing followed by three consecutive wins in Oslo, Paris, and Monaco, the latter with a personal best and season-leading 17.52m.

Field event athletes Rajindra Campbell and Romaine Beckford are the next best-placed Jamaican men, both ranked second in their events. Campbell, the Olympic shot put bronze medallist, has earned 17 points from finishes of second in Rabat, third in Rome, and fifth in Eugene (with a season-best 22.04m). Beckford has also accumulated 17 points in the high jump, following consistent efforts: fourth in Doha, fifth in Rabat, sixth in Rome, and seventh in Monaco.

National champion and world 100m leader Kishane Thompson, with a best of 9.75, is ranked fourth with 15 points. He was second in Shaoxing before winning in Eugene in 9.85.

Sprint hurdler Rasheed Broadbell, who is unlikely to compete again this season after suffering an injury during warm-up at the National Championships, is sixth in the men's 110m hurdles with 14 points, courtesy of a win in Doha (13.14) and a third-place finish in Shaoxing.

Olympic discus champion Roje Stona, with three points, is ranked seventh after a sixth-place finish in Stockholm. Olympic long jump silver medallist Wayne Pinnock rounds out the Jamaican men in the top eight, sitting eighth after placing fourth with 8.06m.

At Saturday's London Diamond League, four Jamaicans will get a chance to improve their standings. Stona will compete in the men's shot put, Goule-Toppin in the women's 800m, and the duo of Rushell Clayton and Andrenette Knight in the women's 400m hurdles.

At the finals in Zurich, winners will be crowned Wanda Diamond League champions in a winner-takes-all showdown. The victors will receive the prestigious Diamond Trophy and a wildcard entry to the next World Athletics Championships.