ANDREW Riley of the University of Illinois, Champaign, snatched the Big Ten Indoor Championships 60 metres straight and hurdles titles on the weekend at the Devaney Center in Lincoln, Nebraska.

As expected, the 23-year-old Calabar High School past student retained his 60m hurdles crown for the fourth consecutive year after logging a meet record 7.62 seconds.

He bested teammate Cody Wisslead, who ran a personal best 7.89 seconds and Herman Washington of the University of Michigan who also timed a personal best 7.97 seconds.

Riley broke the previous Big Ten meet record of 7.64 seconds set by TJ Nelson of Michigan in 2001.

Unexpectedly, however, he dashed to a personal best 6.62 seconds to win the 60-metre dash, up from third place last year. He just missed out on the meet record of 6.61 seconds established by Adam Harris of Illinois four years ago.

Riley, who lowered his previous personal best by one tenth of a second, also set a University of Illinois indoor school record in the short sprint.

Head coach Mike Turk said afterwards: “Riley once against broke the 60m record. Winning the 60m for the first time meant a lot to him and I am so happy for him. He was dominate in both events.”

Riley eclipsed Indiana University’s Kind Butler, 6.67 seconds, and Illinois teammate Brandon Stryganek, 6.76 seconds.

Meanwhile at the Southeastern Conference Indoor Championships Damar Forbes of Louisiana State University measured a season-best 7.95 metres for silver in the long jump won by the University of Florida’s Marquis Dendy in a personal best 8.06 metres.

Forbes’s fellow Jamaican Kamal Fuller of the University of Alabama finished third with a mark of 7.66 metres.

For the second consecutive year Forbes, a Central American and Caribbean Championships silver medallist, had to finish runner-up in the SEC Indoors, which he did to fellow Jamaican Tarik Batchelor last season.