Day 1 at the Grand Slam Track opener in Kingston had a bit of everything: Gabby Thomas getting her first win of the season, Kenny Bednarek edging Seville in a tight 100m, and Christopher Bailey dropping a 44.34 bomb in the 400m. But while the racing delivered, the vibe in the stadium was a mixed bag. The crowd was thin. The energy? Hit or miss – unless a Jamaican athlete was on the line. Then, it suddenly felt like a block party with a decent atmosphere!
On the track, there were a few standout races. The men’s 100m? Classic USA vs. Jamaica fireworks. Kenny Bednarek edged Oblique Seville by just one-hundredth of a second. And over in the 400m, indoor world champ Christopher Bailey dropped a 44.34 bomb that left even Olympic silver medalist Matthew Hudson-Smith chasing. Then came Grant Fisher with the smoothest last-lap kick to steal the men’s 5,000m in style, leading a U.S. sweep. But it was Day 2 that serves up platters of drama!
Right off the bat, the women’s 400m was stacked! Gabby Thomas was back again, this time facing Salwa Eid Naser and Marileidy Paulino. You could feel it – three elite talents in one race, and something had to give. Kenny Bednarek was back for the 200m and Cole Hocker and Josh Kerr started their campaign in 1500m! Let’s dive deep into the results.
First up, Bednarek. He was on fire! The double Olympic 200m silver medalist made it look effortless as he bagged the 100-200m double to take home the Grand Slam title in the short sprint group. On Friday, he narrowly won the 100m by just 0.01 seconds. Then, on Saturday, he cruised through the 200m in 20.07 seconds, beating Great Britain’s Zharnel Hughes (20.37) and Fred Kerley (20.39) with a commanding lead coming off the bend. With two wins, Bednarek racked up a perfect 24 points and … and a cool $100,000 prize!
Meanwhile, in the long sprint group, Gabby Thomas wasn’t going to let the moment slip away either! The Olympic 200m Gold medalist claimed victory in her signature event on Friday. But it was Saturday’s 400m that had everyone talking! Thomas clocked a massive personal best of 49.14 seconds, holding off reigning Olympic champion Marileidy Paulino and finishing second only to Salwa Eid Naser, who ran a world-leading 48.67. With a win in the 200m and a runner-up finish in the 400m, Gabby wrapped up her campaign with 20 points, enough to clinch the Grand Slam crown in her group! That score sealed her Grand Slam title—and yep, $100K in the bag!
Josh Kerr and Cole Hocker face an upset at Grand Slam Track
Who saw that coming?! Olympic 800m champion Emmanuel Wanyonyi pulled off a stunning upset at the Grand Slam Track meet in Kingston on Saturday, beating all three Olympic 1500m medalists, right in their own backyard!
Wanyonyi, just 20, stormed to victory in 3:35.18, outkicking the likes of Yared Nuguse, Cole Hocker, and Josh Kerr in the final stretch. Nuguse grabbed second, Hocker rallied for third, and Kerr, fading late, was pushed to fifth by fellow Brit Neil Gourley. What’s wild? Wanyonyi’s 1500m best before this was 3:43.19! But with 1:41.11 800m speed in his legs, he proved that you just can’t count him out.
The post Grand Slam Track Day 2 Results: Gabby Thomas Wins $100K, Josh Kerr Suffers Upset, Kenny Bednarek Dominates & More appeared first on EssentiallySports.
