Laverne Jones in Ponce (© Fernando Neris)
Ponce, Puerto RicoOlympic 110m Hurdles silver medallist David Payne opened his season with a 13.35 win and meet record at the 3rd Ponce Grand Prix on Saturday (16) at the Paquito Montaner Stadium, where Laverne Jones-Ferrette posted a double sprint victory.
The Ponce Grand Prix is also one of a select group of Area meetings at which points can be acquired by athletes to qualify for the IAAF / VTB Bank World Athletics Final, to be held on 12-13 September in Thessaloniki, Greece.
In his first 110m Hurdles race of the year, the 2007 World Championships bronze medallist improved his own meet record of 13.49 from last year and left his countrymen Dexter Faulk (13.43) and Marlon Odom (13.82) in second and third, respectively.
Jones-Ferrette at the double
Laverne Jones-Ferrette of the US Virgin Islands was the star of the night with a double victory in the sprint events with respective records.
She first took the 100m in 11.28 seconds and bettered the 11.32 time set a year ago by 2008 World indoor champion Angela Williams, who finished a distant sixth this time.
USA’s 2005 world Long Jump champion Tianna Madison (11.31) and Bahamian veteran Chandra Sturrup (11.44) followed her to the finish line.
An hour later, she beat defending champion Ebonie Floyd-Broadnax of the USA in the photo finish as both clocked 22.76 in the 200m, four hundredths of a second faster than the latter’s record, set in 2008.
Culson continues to impress
Local fans were pleased with two home victories and two national records.
Ponce-born Javier Culson, the 2006 Ibero-American champion, pleased the home crowd with his convincing win in the 400m Hurdles in 48.43 second, just 0.01 off his national mark established two weeks earlier in Kingston.
“I am very happy with the training we have done so far. When I ran 48.42, I thought it was luck, but I repeated the time and I believe it could have been better as I started too fast”, commented Culson.
The 24-year-old beat Jamaica’s 2004 Olympic runner-up Danny McFarlane (49.03) for the second time this month. Ruben McCoy of the USA finished third in 50.36.
“I have not been able to qualify for the World and Olympic finals. I want to achieve it for the fans. With these recent marks, I believe I can make it to the finals. I have a new target now: breaking the 48 seconds,” said Culson, who celebrated with the Puerto Rican flag on his shoulder.
He currently ranks second in the 2009 world lists, only behind USA’ World champion Kerron Clement, who ran 48.38 on the same day in Carson. [NB: Since there was an error in placement of the hurdles, Clement’s performance from Carson will not be valid for list purposes.]
His next outing will be at the IAAF Grand Prix in Belem, Brazil, on 24 May.
African champion Joke Odumosu of Nigeria took the women’s race in a national record of 55.02.
In the 400m flat, Ato Stephens of Trinidad and Tobago renewed his 2008 with edging World and Olympic 4x400m relay medallist Andrae Williams of the Bahamas in the photo finish.
Both men stopped the clock in 45.07 seconds, close to the meet record of 45.01 set by Stephens in 2008.
Jamaal Torrance of the USA came third in 45.40, ahead of Héctor Carrasquillo, who improved the Puerto Rican mark to 45.87.
Cydonie Mothersill-Modibo of the Cayman Islands completed a husband-wife victory over the one-lap race with a national record of 52.18.
Carrasquillo anchored his team to a national record in the 4x400m with 3:04.87 in the last race of the night. Félix Martínez, Javier Culson and Víctor Benítez completed the quartet.
The men’s 100m did not quite meet the crowd’s expectations as five sub-10 second men could not beat the GP record of 10.11 by Brendan Christian.
Netherland Antilles’ Churandy Martina, who finished fourth at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, took the win in 10.19, ahead of 2009 European indoor champion Dwain Chambers (10.21), in his season opener at the distance.
Mark Jelks of the USA came third (10.32), ahead of defending champion Brendan Christian (10.41) of Antigua and Barbuda and Saint Kitts and Nevis’s 2003 world champion Kim Collins (10.45).
Christian maintained his hegemony over the 200m with 20.61.
Defending champion Brian Johnson (8.04m) and Olympic finalist Funmi Jimoh (6.64m) sealed a double victory for the USA in the Long Jump.
Following the successful organization of the Iberoamerican Championships in 2006, Ponce has staged its annual Grand Prix, a NACAC Area Permit meeting, and hopes to join the IAAF Diamond League, starting in 2010.
Featuring over a dozen former World and Olympic medallists, the Ponce Grand Prix was broadcast live on Direct TV to 21 million households in the Americas, with a team that includes former world champion and Olympic medalist Ato Boldon.
Javier Clavelo Robinson for the IAAF
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