Notebook: New Challengers Include Josh Hoey, Addy Wiley; Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone Moving To Shorter Races

By David Woods for DyeStat

John Nepolitan photo

Grand Slam Track resumes with changes, additions and subtractions this weekend at Philadelphia’s Franklin Field:

>> Biggest change is trimming the meet to two days, Saturday and Sunday, from the previous three.

>> Long distances category has been cut from two races to only the 3,000 meters. Consequently, first prize has been halved from $100,000 to $50,000.

>> U.S. additions to the Challengers include Anna Cockrell, Christian Coleman, Graham Blanks, Nico Young, Josh Hoey, Hobbs Kessler and Addy Wiley,

>> Out with injuries are Devon Allen, Masai Russell, Roshawn Clarke, Cyréna Samba-Mayela, Oblique Seville, Jasmine Camacho-Quinn and Luis Grijalva. Fred Kerley remains suspended, pending legal proceedings.

>> Switching categories is Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone, from long hurdles (400m hurdles and 400m) to short hurdles (100m hurdles and 100m). She has not raced a 100 meters since a wind-aided 11.07 (+3.5) in April 2018 as a Kentucky freshman.

Across the first two slams at Kingston and Miami, five have earned the maximum $200,000: McLaughlin-Levrone, Grant Fisher, Melissa Jefferson-Wooden, Kenny Bednarek and Alison dos Santos. The latter three are all 4-0.

Entries of Hoey and Wiley make the short distances more intriguing.

Hoey is coming off an indoor season in which he ran the second-fastest 800 meters ever and won the world championship. He also ran 3:33.66 in the 1,500.

He joins a group that finished 1-2-3-5 in the 1,500m at the Paris Olympics: Cole Hocker, Josh Kerr, Yared Nuguse and Kessler. Hocker is 0-5 in 1,500s since Paris.

Wiley is coming off a Sunday 800 meters at Rabat, Morocco, in which she nearly won her first Diamond League race. Wiley, 21, who would be a college junior if she had not gone pro early, finished third in 1:57.55 – just behind Ethiopia’s Tsige Duguma, 1:57.42, and South Africa’s Prudence Sekgodiso, 1:57.52. Wiley was third with 300 meters left and might have won if she had stayed outside instead of going to the rail, where she was blocked by the two Africans.

Contact David Woods at dwoods1411@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter: @DavidWoods007.