FOUR
PRE CLASSIC SPRINTS, EIGHT BEIJING MEDALISTS - PreClassic.com
Eugene, Oregon--Thirty-four. Has any American meet ever had more reigning Olympic medalists
than this year's 35th annual Prefontaine Classic at Hayward Field?
That's the total number of 2008 Olympic
medalists entered in Sunday's meet, eight more having been added in the
four sprints, with two of the three Beijing medalists in each event!
Leading the charge in the Nutrilite 300 Meters is Olympic 400 gold
medalist LaShawn
Merritt, ranked No. 1 in the world in 2008 by Track
& Field News magazine. Winner of last year's Prefontaine
Classic and Olympic Trials races, Merritt saved his fastest for
Beijing, scorching a 43.75 lifetime best, making him the 5th fastest
quartermiler in history. He also has the three fastest
times thus far in 2009. Also in the race is Olympic bronze medalist David
Neville, 300-Meter
indoor world recordholder Wallace Spearmon,
the "X-Man", Xavier Carter, and Trinidad's Rennie Quow.
Matching Merritt's gold on the women's side is 100-Meter champion Shelly-Ann
Fraser of Jamaica. Her 10.78 personal best beat silver medalist Kerron
Stewart by 2/100ths. They will be joined in their rematch in the
Visa 100 Meters by 2005 World Championships gold medalist Lauryn
Williams, and the fastest American so far this year, Carmelita
Jeter.
On the men's side, there will be two incredible sections of
the 100
Meters, both of them stacked with top talent. In the featured race,
former world recordholder Asafa Powell will face off against
Olympic bronze medalist Walter Dix of the U.S., 2009
world-leader
(9.97) Churandy Martina of the Netherlands Antilles, and
Olympic silver medalist Richard Thompson of Trinidad. Five of
the top 10 from last year are in this race, as ranked by Track
& Field News. What's mind-boggling is that the second section
has two more athletes ranked in the top 10 in the world, Nesta
Carter and Michael Frater of Jamaica. Add in 2004
Olympic 200 champion Shawn Crawford, plus fellow American Rae
Edwards, who ran 10.02 into a negative wind last Monday, and you
have a field capable of running faster than the first section.
Finally, in the Nutrilite 400 meters for women, 2008 world No. 1
and Olympic bronze medalist Sanya Richards will be rematched
against Olympic silver medalist Shericka Williams, and
fellow-Jamaican Novlene Williams, who took the measure of
Richards earlier this year. Richards has been very successful on the
Hayward Field oval, however, going back to 2002 when she took second in
the 400 as a prep athlete. Wild-cards in this race are Russians Yuliya
Gushchina and Anastasia Kapachinskaya, who ranked 6th and
7th in the world in 2008. Add in African Champion Amantle Montsho (the
first-ever athlete in the Pre Classic from Botswana), and you have six
of the top 10 in the world, as ranked by Track & Field News.
There are still both Reserved and General Admission tickets
available from goducks.com or 1-800-WEBFOOT. The NIKE Prefontaine
Classic will be shown live on NBC from 2 till 4 p.m. ET. NIKE has
been the title sponsor of the Prefontaine Classic every year since 1984.
NUTRILITE 300 METERS (MEN)
LaShawn Merritt
Xavier Carter
David Neville
Tyler Christopher (Canada)
Rennie Quow (Trinidad)
Wallace Spearmon
Darold Williamson
Rodney Martin
VISA 100 METERS (WOMEN)
Shelly-Ann Fraser (Jamaica)
Muna Lee
Torri Edwards
Lauryn Williams
Kerron Stewart (Jamaica)
Carmelita Jeter
Marshevet Hooker
Tianna Madison
100 METERS (MEN) Section I
Michael Frater (Jamaica)
Ivory Williams
Leroy Dixon
Shawn Crawford
Rae Edwards
Nesta Carter (Jamaica)
Ryan Bailey
100 METERS (MEN) Section II
Asafa Powell (Jamaica)
Walter Dix
Michael Rodgers
Churandy Martina (Neth Antilles)
Richard Thompson (Trinidad)
Marc Burns (Trinidad)
Jaysuma Ndure (Norway)
Travis Padgett
NUTRILITE 400 METERS (WOMEN)
Sanya Richards
Yuliya Guschina (Russia)
Anastasia Kapachinskaia (Russia)
Novlene Williams (Jamaica)
Amantle Montsho (Botswana)
Shericka Williams (Jamaica)
Melaine Walker (Jamaica)
Natasha Hastings
