VCB repels Felix in swift 21.98

BY PAUL A REID Observer Writer Paulareid69@yahoo.com

Sunday, June 13, 2010

RANDALL’S ISLAND, New York — Jamaica’s Veronica Campbell Brown ran a world-leading and meet record 21.98 seconds (1.4 m/s) to win the 200m race at yesterday’s Adidas Classic at the Icahn Stadium on Randall’s Island, the fifth stop on the new IAAF Diamond League series.

Campbell Brown, who led from the start, caused a few missed heartbeats after she grabbed her left hamstring and lay flat on the track moments after beating American Allyson Felix for the first time outside of the Olympic Games in their first clash on American soil.

Felix was second in 22.03 seconds, while another American, Bianca Knight, was third in 22.59.

Jamaicans won one race and took two second places as quarter-miler Shericka Williams and Yohan Blake in the men’s 100m were both second in their events in a near filled stadium on a day bathed in sunlight.

Despite the presence of several world leaders, Olympic and World Championships medallists, especially in the field events, there was a feeling of anti-climax as both double world record-holder Usain Bolt and American rival Tyson Gay had pulled out of the meet with injuries.

The announcement of Bolt’s participation had caused a rush on tickets months ago as fans anticipated his first meeting of the season with Gay over the short sprint.

Their withdrawal left the 200m as the premier event on the schedule and Campbell Brown, whose previous season’s best and world-leading time was 22.32, obliged with a well executed race and her new coach Anthony Carpenter thinks she is on the right track.

“This was the objective coming into the race to run fast so mission accomplished,” Carpenter told the Sunday Observer, adding that he did not think she ran too fast.

This was Campbell Brown’s second win here in the last three years as she won the 100m in 2008 when the meet was called the Reebok Classic and was second to Carmelita Jeter in the 100m last year.

In the men’s 100m A race, Blake mistimed the finish, lifting his right hand a few steps from the line and was edged by Trinidad’s Olympic silver medallist Richard Thompson in a wind-aided 8.89 seconds to 9.91 (+2.4 m/s).

Blake told the Sunday Observer that, “I am not the best of starters, but I will run you down in the last 40m, but today I came up just short.”

Blake’s Racers Club training partner Daniel Bailey was third in 9.92 seconds.

Olympic and World Championships silver medallist Shericka Williams was second in the one lap event here, clocking 51.24 seconds, to finish behind Botswana’s Amantie Monthsho - 50.79 seconds.

The fast finishing Williams who just failed to catch Monthsho at the tape said time or placings were not important, “I just came here to execute my race and get ready for Trials,” she told the Observer.

Williams who has a season best 51.11 seconds said her season is “progressing well, I felt a lot better today than previous races.”

Shereefa Lloyd was third in 51.64 seconds with Rosemarie Whyte fourth in 51.70 seconds and Melocia Clarke eighth in 53.60 seconds.

World Junior Championships 200m silver medallist Nickel Ashmeade failed to complete the men’s 100m B race, pulling up just past the 70m mark, grabbing the back of his left thigh.

This was his first 100m race of the season after running the 200m at the JAAA JII meet in May.

American Ray Edwards won the race in a personal best 10.00 seconds beating Trinidadian duo of Keston Bledman - 10.01 seconds and Marc Burns - 10.11 seconds.

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VCB repels Felix in swift 21.98