He was awarded a scholarship in 2012 to attend the IAAF's Regional High Performance Training Centre in Jamaica and began to study at Kingston College. Soon after he had the opportunity to train with world record holder Usain Bolt. Hughes continued to progress in the 2013 season, winning 100 m gold at both the 2013 CARIFTA Games and the 2013 Pan American Junior Athletics Championships. He also made his first appearance in senior international competition at the 2013 Central American and Caribbean Championships in Athletics, reaching the final and recording a personal best of 10.23 seconds in the heats.