Clement shatters world mark

FAYETEVILLE: Trinidad and Tobago-born Kerron Clement smashed the great Michael Johnson’s world indoor 400-metre record when he ran an awesome 44.57 seconds to win the US NCAA Indoor Track and Field title in the event on Saturday night. On an evening when Caribbean athletes Tiandra Ponteen, Fana Ashby and Maurice Smith snatched major titles, the 19-year-old Clement, running for the University of Florida, broke Johnson’s mark of 44.63 set on March 4, 1995 at the US Indoor Championships. 

“This is amazing,” Clement said. “I can’t describe how I feel right now,” said Clement, who switched allegiance a year ago from TT to the United States, ahead of the World Junior Championship in Italy.   Until Saturday night’s run, only Johnson himself and LaShawn Merritt had broken the 45 second barrier since the record was set more than a decade ago. Clement ran the race at a terrific pace from the gun and wrested the lead early from Louisiana State University’s Kelly Willie. He logged a rapid 200-metre split of 21.08 and powered down the backstretch with no sign of weakening to win ahead of American Terry Gatson (45.29) and Willie (45.41).

Trinidad and Tobago’s former CARIFTA Games champion Damion Barry placed seventh in the event in 46.68 seconds. Clement also enjoyed 1600-metre relay success with Florida.  He joined Jamaican Sekou Clarke, Bernard Middleton, and Stefan Pastor, in powering Florida to victory in three minutes 03.51 seconds, topping Baylor. In one of the most thrilling events of the meet, Ponteen, of St Kitts and Nevis, registered her biggest career win when she edged Grenada’s Hazel-Ann Regis to capture the women’s 400-metre title in a personal best and national record 50.91 seconds for the University of Florida.“I knew it was going to be a tough race,” Ponteen said after her win. Regis, the reigning Central American and Caribbean (CAC) champion, was only 0.01 seconds behind in the second spot, clocking 50.92.

“I am an aggressive runner and so is Hazel-Ann, I was just able to edge her in the end,” Ponteen added.  American Stephanie Smith was a distant third with her 52.54 win in Section-1 of the final and St Vincent and the Grenadines’ Kineke Alexander placed sixth with a 54.06-second clocking.   Ponteen and Regis are now ranked in the Top-5 on the IAAF’s world “Performance List” for the season. Ashby, who got silver in Friday’s 200 metres, just 0.01 seconds off the winner, redeemed herself with a fine win in the 60 metres. Ashby sped to a season’s best 7.18 seconds to dominate Toyin Olupona (7.24) and Tianna Madison (7.27) in short sprint and Jamaican Smith, her team-mate at Auburn, won the heptathlon title with 6,004 points. 

The Caribbean notched 800 medals through Trinidadian Sheridan Kirk and Grenada’s Neisha Bernard-Thomas. Kirk ran one minute 47.64 seconds for third in the men’s 800 that Kevin Hicks won in 1:46.97, with Jamaican Aldwyn Sappleton eighth in 1:48.37, and Bernard-Thomas, the reigning outdoor NCAA champion, took silver in the women’s race in 2:03.93 behind Aneita Denton (2:03.65).  The Caribbean haul at the meet moved to 10 Saturday night, after throwers Candice Scott and Kimberli Barrett had won gold medals on Friday, Ashby won 200 silver and Scott, shot put bronze.

MEN
400 metres: 1 Kerron Clement  44.57 (WR); 2 Terry Gatson  45.29; 3 Kelly Willie  45.41; 7th Damion Barry 46.68
60 metres: 1 DaBryan Blanton 6.58; 2 Dusty Stamer  6.62; 3 Richard Adu-Bobie 6.66
Heptathlon — 1 Maurice Smith (Jam) 6,004 points
800 metres: 1 Kevin Hicks 1:46.97; 2 James Hatch 1:47.40; 3 Sherridan Kirk (TT) 1:47.64;
8th Aldwyn Sappleton (Jam) 1:48.37
1600-metre relay: 1 Florida 3:03.51 (Sekou Clarke, Bernard Middleton, Stefan Pastor, Kerron
Clement); 2 Baylor 3:04.72; 3 Northern Iowa  3:04.95
WOMEN
400 metres: 1 Tiandra Ponteen (SKN) 50.91 seconds; 2 Hazel Ann Regis (Gren) 50.92; 3 Stephanie Smith 52.54; 6th Kineke Alexander (SVG) 54.06
60 metres: 1 Fana Ashby (TT) 7.18; 2 Toyin Olupona 7.24; 3 Tianna Madison 7.27
800 metres: 1 Aneita Denton 2:03.65; 2 Neisha Bernard-Thomas (Gren) 2:03.93; 3 Beata Rudzinska 2:04.12