Miller-Uibo produces pair of world leaders with 22.61 and 50.52 efforts in women’s 200 and 400, with Bednarek also achieving fastest time globally this year with 20.06 in men’s 200, along with personal-best 10.14 in 100; Richardson runs world-leading 11.05 in women’s 100, with Hudson-Smith winning men’s 400

By Todd Grasley for DyeStat

Track returned Saturday in Clermont, as professional athletes from Central Florida and as far as Jacksonville came to get a true taste of competition at the Showdown in O-Town at Montverde Academy, organized by both the Star Athletics and Pure Athletics training groups.

It was an actual meet featuring six track events and a triple jump exhibition, not just athletes racing against their own training groups or participating virtually, but head-to-head competition involving World Champions and Olympic medalists.

RESULTS

The marquee matchup of the day saw Justin Gatlin, 38, versus Noah Lyles, the 22-year-old phenom and future of USA Track and Field.

Although the 100-meter showdown had the star power of an Olympic final next year in Tokyo, the two collided in the prelims, with Lyles edging out Gatlin in a wind-aided race (+4.0 m/s) by a margin of 9.93 to 9.99 seconds.

Mother Nature tried to take over the meet, delaying the start of both the men’s and women’s 100-meter finals.

Both Gatlin and Lyles decided to end their respective days after their prelims, which meant someone else would be crowned the men’s 100 winner.

That title went to Gatlin’s Star Athletics teammate Kenny Bednarek. The former standout at Indian Hills Community College in Iowa secured the win in a wind-legal 10.14 — with Olympic and World Championship 200-meter silver medalist Andre De Grasse of Canada taking second in 10.17 — and followed that personal best up by doubling in the 200 in a world-leading 20.06.

Sha’Carri Richardson, who ran collegiate and World U-20 records last year in the 100-meter dash by clocking 10.75 as a freshman at LSU to win the Division 1 title, broke the 11-second barrier again with an wind-aided 10.94 (+2.8 m/s) in the prelims.

Richardson picked up the victory in the final in a wind-legal 11.05, just ahead of former Oregon standout Hannah Cunliffe — co-holder of the collegiate record in the indoor 60-meter dash at 7.07 — who finished second in 11.14, her fastest 100 performance since 2017.

The times achieved by Richardson and Cunliffe were the top two wind-legal marks in the world this year.

Sensational double for Shaunae Miller-Uibo

Shaunae Miller-Uibo, the 2016 Olympic gold medalist in the 400 meters and runner-up at the 2019 World Championships, made her season debut.

Miller-Uibo looked very relaxed en route to a world-leading mark of 50.52, with American Kaylin Whitney placing second in 51.99. The Bahamian ended the night on a high note by producing another world lead, clocking 22.61, despite running into a -1.1 m/s headwind in the 200, giving an indication that a potential double could still be a target for Miller-Uibo next year in Tokyo.

Miller-Uibo opened up last season at the Tom Jones Memorial Invitational in Gainesville with a blistering 49.05. Of her six races contested at that distance last year, five were under 50 seconds, including her personal-best 48.37 from the World Championships in Doha, Qatar.

On the men’s side, Matthew Hudson-Smith of Great Britain, running for adidas, led a trio under 46 seconds by prevailing in 45.55, just ahead of Alejandro Zapata of Colombia, representing Life Speed Track Club, in 45.56. LaShawn Merritt, the 2008 Olympic champion, took third in 45.98.

Two-time Olympic gold medalist Christian Taylor, as well as his training partners from Rana Reider’s group in Jacksonville made the trip south.

Taylor competed in the 100-meter dash, clocking 10.80, and also made his triple jump debut with a mark of 54-11.50 (16.75m), far off his personal-best of 59-9 (18.21m), which ranks second on the all-time list.

Inspiration Games up next

Lyles, Miller-Uibo and Taylor are all scheduled to compete again Thursday in the Weltklasse Zurich Inspiration Games, with one of the American sites designated for IMG Academy in Bradenton.

Taylor’s teammates De Grasse and Jimmy Vicaut of France are slated to compete in the 100-yard dash.

The meet will see athletes compete virtually at eight different venues globally, with a schedule consisting of the pole vault for both genders, men’s triple jump, 100 yards and 200 meters, in addition to women’s 150 meters and 300-meter hurdles, along with a 3x100-meter relay.