Former 100m world record holder Asafa Powell captured the 200m title at the 2010 Jamaica National Senior Championships earlier this evening. Powell made up the stagger and by the top of the curve had a 5-meter lead on the field before powering his way to a season best 19.97 secs.
Powell, who has a personal best of 19.90 back in 1996, said in a post-race interview with the Jamaican media that his coach Stephen Francis wants him to run more 200m. His time of 19.97 is the 5th fastest time in the world this year behind Usain Bolt (19.56 and 19.76) and USA’s Walter Dix (19.86 and 19.89). Powell also has the world leading time of 9.82 in the 100m.
Olympic and World 100m champion Shelly-Ann Fraser, Powell’s MVP teammate, captured the women’s 200m in 22.48 secs ahead of teammate Anneisha McLaughlin and LSU’s Samantha Henry. Fraser, who like Powell is not enthused about running the 200m, said after the race that she was just following her coach’s instructions.
Biggest Upset
The biggest upset of the championships came in the men’s 100m as young under-the-radar Oshane Bailey caught the field and crossed the finish line in a personal best of 10.14 secs. ahead of Olympian Michael Frater and Kemmari Roach. Bailey, the 20-year-old former Calabar High School student, has been making vast improvement recently.
Sherone Simpson captured the women’s 100m in 11.12 secs. ahead of UTECH’s Carrie Russell.
Oral Thompson took the men’s 400m title ahead of defending champion Ricardo Chambers, while Novlene William-Mills defended her title in the women’s edition, beating the reigning Olympic and World 400m silver medalist Shericka Williams, 2009 Worlds 400m hurdles finalist Kaliese Spencer, and former trials champion Rosemarie Whyte.
Rising quarter-milers Edino Steele and Stephanie McPherson were eliminated from the finals of both 400m races as victims of the new false-start rule.
See full results here