Olympic 200m champion Gabby Thomas laid down a marker on the opening day of the inaugural Grand Slam Track event, winning her specialist event in a time of 22.62sec.
The American was an emphatic winner, running clear of Olympic 400m champion Marileidy Paulino in second and Britain’s Dina Asher-Smith in third, with both clocking 22.96sec.
The trio are competing in the ‘Long Sprints’ category at Grand Slam Track, a lucrative new track league with $100,000 on the line for the winner of each category at each of four meets this year. Athletes compete in fields of eight over two distances, with the points totals from each race added together to determine the winner. Thomas is in pole position to claim the loot in her category but must maintain the pressure in the 400m on Saturday.
The brainchild of legendary sprinter Michael Johnson, Grand Slam Track aims to revive interest in athletics in between Olympic cycles and to provide athletes with more opportunities to race and more financial reward.
“Normally, these early season meets we’re just practicing and feeling it out,” Thomas said after her win. “Here the stakes are high, the prize pot is huge and the level of competition is also really high.
“That’s not something that we’re really used to in our sport and I think it’s really good.”
Other winners on the first night in Kingston, Jamaica included the American double Olympic champion in the 400m hurdles, Sydney McLaughlin-Lavrone, who finished several metres clear of 2016 Olympic gold medallist Dalilah Muhammad in 52.76sec.
McLaughlin-Lavrone was competing in her first 400m hurdles race since winning gold in Paris last summer.
“Just shaking the cobwebs off,” the 25-year-old said afterwards. “The first one always hurts, but happy to be here.”
The men’s 100m field, missing Olympic champion Noah Lyles, contested a thrilling race, with American sprinter Kenny Bednarek just edging out Jamaica’s Oblique Seville. He finished in 10.07 seconds to his rival’s 10.08. Britain’s Zharnel Hughes was third in 10.13 seconds.
Britain’s Olympic silver medallist Matthew Hudson-Smith was also denied a victory on the opening day by new world indoor 400m champion Chris Bailey, who took victory over 400m in 44.34sec – 0.31 seconds ahead of the Brit.
And there was a shock in the women’s 800m as reigning world champion Mary Moraa of Kenya finished dead last in 2min 00.97sec, a way off the pace of American 1,500m specialist Nikki Hiltz, who clocked 1min 58.23 sec.
Friday’s action in Kingston was sparsely attended despite the big names in action.
After this weekend’s meet in Kingston the series will travel to Miami, Philadelphia, and Los Angeles for another three events before the end of June, when the first champions will be crowned.
