While a number of the country’s top high schools battled for the prestigious Digicel Grand Prix Athletics Championship crown on Saturday, various elite athletes converged at the GC Foster Classics to add to the excitement at the National Stadium.

Among those that graced the track was double Olympic gold medallist Elaine Thompson, who made a surprise appearance in the women’s Clubs and Institutions 400m.

Thompson of MVP Track Club ventured into uncharted territory as part of her preparation phase leading up to the IAAF World Championships in London later this year and finished third in a pedestrian time of 56.03 seconds. The event was won by former Edwin Allen star Shannon Kalawan, now representing the University of Technology, Jamaica (UTech), who was very comfortable from gate to wire, stopping the clock in 54.24 seconds.

Shevonne Dixon (55.56s) of GC Foster College closed fast to take second ahead of a tiring Thompson some 10 metres from the line.

Dawnalee Loney of Mico University College topped the other women’s 400m race in 52.36 seconds, followed in by the Sprintec duo of Verone Chambers (52.40s) and Ristananna Tracey (52.77).

Javon Francis of Akan Track Club also blazed the track in the men’s event, clocking 45.94 seconds for victory ahead of teammate Peter Matthews (46.58s) and Marco Doodnaughtsingh (46.72s) of Mico University College.

The event also included 2014 Commonwealth Games 200m gold medallists Rasheed Dwyer of Sprintec who was fifth in 47.36 seconds.

However, it was the women’s 200m line-up involving Sprintec’s Anneisha McLaughlin-Whilby which drew the loudest cheer from the moderate crowd inside the venue when they came storming down the straight.

McLaughlin-Whilby, who seemed all over a winner some 10 metres from home, pulled up and then clutched at her right hamstring, before hobbling across the line at the back of the field in 37.04 seconds.

Jura Levy of Striders took the event in 22.98 seconds in a trail wind of 1.3 metres per second ahead of Anastasia Le-Roy (23.11s) of Lions and Gayon Evans (23.18s) of Sprintec.

World Championships 4x400m relay gold medallist Christine Day was the second casualty in the event, as she fell over at the back of the field.

The men’s section, which saw Nesta Carter finishing eighth in 21.14 seconds, was won by Demish Gaye of Lions in 20.48 seconds in a negative 0.4-metres-per-second wind speed.

His teammate Oshane Bailey (20.55s) was second, with Chadic Hines (20.76s) of GC Foster College third.

Great Britain’s Zharnel Hughes of Racers Track Club was very easy in 10.12 seconds in section one of the men’s 100m, bettering Trinidad and Tobago’s Emmanuel Callender (10.36s) of The University of the West Indies (UWI) and Ramone Barnswell (10.51s) of MVP.

Kemar Bailey-Cole also of Racers Track Club closed rapidly to win the other race in 10.06 seconds in a wind speed of negative 0.4 metres per second. Bahrain’s Andrew Fisher (10.16s), who also trains at the Glen Mills-coached Racers, was second.

Quarter-miler Stephanie McPherson displayed her versatility when topping one section of the women’s 100m in 11.65 seconds ahead of her MVP teammate and Olympic Bronze medallist Shericka Jackson (11.76s).

Rene Medley (11.83s) of GC Foster College was third, while sprint hurdler Megan Simmonds, also of MVP, was fourth in 11.86 seconds.

MVP’s Shereca Hemmings (11.75s) topped the other race, ahead of Kimberly Leach (12.06s) of University of Technology, Jamaica (UTech) and Melissa Fletcher (12.27s) of UWI.

Meanwhile, the Mico University College’s Samantha James clocked 2:08.99 on her way to victory in the women’s 800m, ahead of Sherona Stewart (2:16.31)

GC Foster College and Nickeisha Grant (2:17.26) of UWI.

GC Foster’s Daniel Glave finished tops in the men’s event in 1:50.26, just bettering Eric McKenzie (1:51.51) of UTech and MVP’s Randux Godfrey (1:51.96) won in a close affair.