MONTEGO BAY, St James — World and Olympic 400m hurdles champion Melaine Walker will compete in the 100m hurdles at the Jamaica International Invitational (JII) Meet set for the National Stadium on May 4.

Donald Quarrie, athletes’ liaison for the meet, told the Jamaica Observer last Friday that Walker has been confirmed for the sprint hurdles. Walker will be running the sprint hurdle in a competitive event for the first time since 2006 when she was a student at the University of Texas.

Walker, who made a much-publicised move from the Stephen Francis-led MVP Track Club after six years, to Racers Track Club in the last month, is expected to face off with London Olympic Games 100m hurdles silver medallist Dawn Harper of the USA, and Jamaica’s Olympic Games semi-finalist Shermaine Williams.

Quarrie told the Observer that despite the absence of World Championships 100m gold medallist Yohan Blake — who suffered a hamstring injury last weekend at the UTech Classic and will be out for a almost two months — the meet would still be interesting.

He pointed to the 20 Olympic individual finalists from London, who have confirmed their entries in the meet that will see the addition of the men’s and women’s discus, as per requirements from the IAAF.

“It’s unfortunate about Yohan, as we really were looking forward to seeing him, but the men’s 100m will still be strong as well as the entire line-ups in the others events,” he said. “So far we have the likes of Ryan Bailey, Nesta Carter, Darvis Patton, Lerone Clarke, Richard Thompson, and Kemar Bailey-Cole, all of whom have run under 10.00 seconds.”

World record holder and World and Olympic champion Usain Bolt will run the 200m, along with Olympic bronze medallist Warren Weir, IAAF Diamond League winner Nickel Ashmeade and American Wallace Spearmon. The female 200m will see Jamaica’s Olympic silver medallist Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce against Olympic silver medallist Kerron Stewart and American Bianca Knight, a past winner of the event here.

UTech’s Stephanie McPherson, who has run the two fastest times in the women’s 400m far this year with a personal best 50.74 seconds, will match strides with defending champion and Olympic finalist Novlene Williams Mills, Britain’s Olympic silver medallist Christine Ohuruogu, Jamaica’s Rose-Marie Whyte and Kaliese Spencer, the two times Diamond League 400m hurdles winner.

The women’s 100m that is expected to highlight Veronica Campbell Brown and American Allyson Felix, will be one of the most anticipated events on the night and will also see double Olympic sprint finalist Murielle Ahoure of the Ivory Coast, and Trinidad’s Kelly Ann Baptiste, who was sixth in London.

The introduction of the discus events, Quarrie said, was on the instructions of the IAAF, and it would serve as motivation for the Jamaicans with two-time national champion and nation record holder Traves Smikle, and former record holder Jason Morgan, who is the second best thrower so far this year with a season-best 65.95m.

India’s Olympic finalist Vikas Gowda and American Jason Young will also take part.

Among the other athletes confirmed are Hansle Parchment, who won the 110m hurdles at last year’s meet on his way to a bronze medal at the London Olympics; Luguelin Santos of the Dominican Republic, who was second in the men’s 400m in London; as well as Jamaican Olympic triple jump finalists Kimberly Williams and Trecia Smith.