World champion Yohan Blake, Novlene Williams Mills along with sprint hurdlers Brigitte Foster-Hylton and Hansle Parchment sparkled in the second half of Saturday’s wildly successful ninth staging of the JN Jamaica International Invitational at the National Stadium.

After double World Record holder Usain Bolt and American World Champion Carmelita Jeter had whetted appetites with world leading performances in the 100m, the Jamaican quartet ensured the nearly jam-packed stadium remained entertained with a series of outstanding performances.

Four world leading times were set at the meet that was an IAAF World Challenge event, while a number of Jamaican athletes also attained Olympic A qualifying standards about 82 days from the start of the globe’s largest sporting extravaganza in London.

Bolt’s 9.82 seconds and Jeter’s 10.81 seconds set the stage for Blake’s 19.91 seconds in the 200m and Williams Mills’ 49.99 seconds over the 400m, their best-ever starts.

About two hours after Bolt shook off two false starts to win the 100m, Blake showed off an improved curve on his way to the world-leading time, leaving former St Jago High teammate Nickel Ashmeade and Warren Weir in his wake.

Last year’s winner Ashmeade clocked 20.09 seconds, while Weir, Blake’s training partner, was third in a personal best 20.21 seconds.

After the race, Blake — the World Championships 100m champion — said while the decision to double has not been made yet, noted that the 200m could be his better event, given his “speed endurance”.

He said he was “surprised” at how fast he started as previously his opening 200m races were timed in about 20.30 seconds.

Williams Mills said she felt she had to defend home turf against the Jamaican-born American Sanya Richards Ross as she chased her down and caught her at about 30 metres from the line in one of the best finishes of the night to win in 49.99 seconds.

Richards Ross, who came into the meet with the world leading 50.18 seconds, lowered her season best to 50.11 seconds and said she was disappointed not to have gone under the 50-second barrier.

Thirty-seven year-old Foster Hylton rolled back the hands of time with a solid 13.51 seconds, the same time she ran to win the World Championships gold medal in Germany in 2009.

After a dismal 2011, it was an outstanding race for Hylton in her opening run as she beat Canada’s Priscilla Lopes-Schliep (12.64 seconds) who was running her second race after giving birth and Great Britain’s Tiffany Porter (12.65 seconds).

Parchment, the World University Games champion, lowered his personal best to 13.19 seconds, a meet record replacing the 13.27 seconds set three years ago by American Antwon Hicks and an Olympic A qualifying standard.

Parchment’s time saw him shoot up the IAAF performance charts to a lifetime high of joint fourth with Cuba’s World Record holder Dayron Robles.

American Ronnie Ash was second in 13.20 seconds ahead of Hicks’ 13.36 seconds.