World Leads and Meet Records Highlight 6th Racers Grand Prix

Kingston, Jamaica – For the thousands of track and field fans that piled into the National Stadium in Kingston, Jamaica for the 6th staging of the Racers Grand Prix Meet it was a night well spent as athletes from Jamaica and around the world delivered scintillating displays on the track and in the field in a two-hour masterclass of athletics.

Afternoon rains had given the track a little bit of extra bounce, and it showed in the performances of the runners.

Four field events, the Men’s Long and Triple Jump, the Men’s High Jump and the Men’s Discus, along with track events highlighted an exciting night of athletics for the fans who had braved the weather to watch the stars perform.

The Men’s Long Jump began the evening’s activities and Shawn-D Thompson of Sprintec Track Club won the night’s opening event with a best of 7.81m. Former World Champion Tajay Gayle was second with a season’s best 7.75m, while the Guyanese standard bearer, Emanuel Archibald, was third with 7.59m.

The Women’s 400m hurdles is proving to be one of the most competitive fields in Jamaican track and field at the moment and Shiann Salmon is seemingly plotting a strategic path to making Jamaica’s team to the Olympic Games. Her performance showed just that as she won the event in 55.41 ahead of the American Cassandra Tate who was second in 55.60 and former national champion Ronda Whyte who was third in a season’s best 56.19s.

Stacey-Ann Williams who is hunting her first individual spot at the Olympic Games ran a perfectly timed race to win the Women’s 400m in 50.86s just ahead Lynna Irby-Jackson of the USA (51.05s) who she caught in the last few meters, while Charokee Young who is also hunting her first individual spot for Jamaica at the Olympics was third in 51.86s.

The Men’s 400m was another exciting race as the 400m hurdles specialist Roshawn Clarke threatened to upset the field, before he too was caught near the line by Nigerian Emmanuel Bamidele who won the race in 45.49s to Clarke’s 45.57s. Zandrion Barnes of GC Foster College who is on the comeback trail was third in 45.62s.

Teenage sensation Jaydon Hibbert was the first to treat the crowd to something really special when he delivered on his promise to provide a “big jump” in the Men’s Triple Jump, flying out to a World Lead and stadium record of 17.75m to remind everyone that he plans to make an assault on not just the gold medal, but the Olympic Games record in Paris, France later this summer.

The 19-year-old began his sequence with a creditable 16.45m, and continued to get better with each jump, getting out to 17.14m on his second jump, 17.30m on his third jump, before wrapping up his night with the new stadium record. All of his jumps were into a negative wind. The crowd was left buzzing with excitement after Hibbert’s performance.

Lanae-Tava Thomas who hasn’t performed on local soil in a while ran a smart race out of lane seven to win the Women’s 200m in a personal best 22.36s. She came off the bend way ahead of the field, and blew away her challengers in the home stretch to win by more than five meters. Ashanti Moore produced a season’s best 22.74s for second while Jodean Williams was third in a season’s best 22.95 as the athletes showed signs of rounding into shape with the Jamaican National Championships just around the corner.

Trinidadian Jereem Richards ran an Olympic Games qualification standard time of 20.13s to win the Men’s 200m from lane six, as the outer lanes proved to be the lucky charm for the half lap event. The confident T&T athlete is rounding into form nicely, having also won in Bermuda earlier this year.

Nigerian Udodi Chudi Onwuzurike was second in 20.27s, while Bryan Levell ran a season’s best 20.48s for third.

The sprint hurdles were also treated on the track and the World Indoor 60m champion, Devynne Charlton of the Bahamas, obliged in the Women’s 100m hurdles in 12.64s, just ahead of a persistent Yanique Thompson who was second in 12.66s, as both women achieved the Olympic standard. Amoi Brown had a season’s best 12.73s for third.

The Men’s 110m hurdles was won by 2022 World Championship silver medallist Trey Cunningham of the USA in a season’s best 13.12s as he ran away from the field over the last few hurdles. Rasheed Broadbell who is making his way back from injury and surgery, since his fall at the World Championships in Budapest last year, was second in 13.24s while Michael Dixson of the USA was third in 13.26s.

Traves Smikle, who has already achieved the Olympic Games standard, remains consistent in the Discus Throw and won the event with a best of 65.65m, Alex Rose of Samoa was second with 65.02m while Reggie Jaggers of the USA was third with 64.64m.

The Men’s High Jump has become very competitive and the trio of Raymond Richards, Christoff Bryan and Lushane Wilson all cleared 2.20m in the Men’s High Jump with Richards coming out the eventual winner, following a jump-off. All three are still chasing the Olympic standard of 2.33m.

The final two events absolutely set the night on fire with a meet record and world lead in the respective 100m races.

Julien Alfred of St. Lucia raised a few eyebrows when produced a fantastic lifetime best of 10.78s to win the Women’s 100m in a new meet record ahead of the vastly improved Crystal Sloley of the University of Technology who breached the 11s barrier for the very first time when she registered 10.99s for second. Shashalee Forbes, who is returning from injury, was third in a season’s best 11.05s.

Alfred’s performance will no doubt bring her front and centre in the conversation about the Women’s 100m at the Olympic Games this summer.

The excitement from the women’s performance had barely died down inside the National Stadium when the men lined up for their 100m.

The excitement and anticipation of something special to come from three of the big names in the race, World Champion, American Noah Lyles and Kenyan Ferdinand Omanyala had promised to run fast times and British record holder Zharnel Hughes was palpable, but the crowd was in for a shocker.

Local lad Oblique Seville, who clearly feels that he has something to prove, stole the show and got everyone out of their seats including former 100m world record holder, Asafa Powell, who along with his wife Alyshia were a part of a jam-packed Grandstand.

Lyles, Ferdinand and Hughes were left in the wake of the slight of frame Jamaican who dropped a new personal best time of 9.82 to win going away from the field. It was the fastest time run by a Jamaican male since Usain Bolt exited centre stage and left huge boots to fill.

Lyles was second in 9.85s and Omanyala third in 10.02s while Hughes was fifth in a season’s best 10.09s. Kendal Williams of the USA was fourth in 10.06s.

Seville got off to a fine start and was able to hold his top-end speed all the way to the line, even having time to look over at the World Champion Lyles as he blazed home in style to the delight of the home fans.

Overseas athletes are already speaking of being back in Jamaica for the Racers Grand Prix next year.