2013 Pre Classic To Feature Women’s 100 Meter Re-Match

Historic Hayward Field’s strongest women’s 100-meter field ever will race on June 1st as all three medallists and 6 of 8 London finallists will clash

USA VS. Jamaica sprint showdown comes to 2013 Pre Classic

Courtsey of the Pre Classic
May 6, 2013 

            Eugene, Oregon – Another classic battle in the ongoing USA vs. Jamaica turf battle for sprint dominance will play itself out in the women’s 100 Meters at the 39^th Pre Classic on June 1^st  at Hayward Field. Since the 2007 World Championships, there have been a total of 15 Olympic or World Championships medals awarded in the women’s 100:  9 have been won by Jamaicans and 5 by Americans, with the island nation holding a commanding 4-1 lead in gold medals.

The Pre Classic, a member of the prestigious IAAF Diamond League, has prepared a treat for sprint fans everywhere, as the women’s 100 is the latest event whose field is scheduled to include all the 2012 Olympic medalists. The overall collection of hardware is staggering, as every 100 gold medalist since 2007—as well as every 200 gold medalist since 2004—will be in the field.  Five complete medal sweeps are represented, highlighted by the London 100 and 200.

Jamaica’s trio of talents will be led by 2-time Olympic gold medalist Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, who won the century in London and Beijing. She also owns a pair of gold medals from the 2009 World Championships, giving her four major golds – an accomplishment that can be matched by three others who will face her.  She was the fastest in the world last year with a PR 10.70 and was ranked No. 1 in the world by Track & Field News.  Fraser-Pryce earned three medals in London – a gold and a pair of silvers.

The last time Jeter was at Hayward field. We caught disgraced agent Mark Block cheering her on in the Nike VIP box.

America’s top-ranked 100-meter sprinter is London silver medalist Carmelita Jeter.  Ranked No. 1 in the world for three straight years by T&FN (2009-11), she missed gold last year by just 0.03 seconds – 10.78 behind Fraser-Pryce’s 10.75.  She rebounded to anchor the USA’s smashing of the 4×100-meter relay world record in 40.82, breaking a mark set 29 years earlier.  She also owns four major golds, and collected a trio of medals in London – one of each color. Jeter and SAFP have met 23 times in the 100 since ’08 with the American holding a 13-10 lead.

Jamaica counters with bronze medalist Veronica Campbell-Brown, who trains in Florida.  She is a former World Champion at this distance, but is better known in the 200 meters, having won three of her four major golds there – including a pair at the Olympics in 2008 and 2004.  Campbell-Brown was part of the exciting race in London, finishing just 0.03 seconds behind Jeter for the bronze (10.81). VCB and Jeter have met no fewer than 27 times since ’06, with the Jamaican having a 17 -10 edge, although in their last 10 meetings the tally is  7-3 for Jeter.

America adds the most decorated athlete in the field, Allyson Felix, a Californian who started shining as a teenager.  Owner of 12 major gold medals, she is best known for her dominance in the 200 meters (winning the London Olympics as well as three World Championships titles).  Then again, she has become perhaps the most dependable women’s relay runner in U.S. history, joining greats such as Evelyn Ashford and Florence Griffith-Joyner.  Her second-leg efforts on the 4×100 and 4×400 in London were so decisive that the U.S. only had to worry about handoffs.  In the 100, Felix can claim a 5^th from London last year.

The 2005 World Champion in the long jump, Tianna Bartoletta (formerly Madison) stormed the world last year in the 100, ending up just 0.04 seconds out of the medals in London.  Known for a blistering start, she was a natural to lead off the USA 4×100 team, giving the Americans a lead that would never vanish.

Jamaica’s next entrant is Kerron Stewart, another strong starter but who actually anchored their silver-medal 4×100 team in London.  Stewart, the 2008 Olympic silver medalist, didn’t make the London final, but the former NCAA champion at Auburn was ranked No. 10 in the world last year by T&FN.

Two lanes remain, and they are claimed by Blessing Okagbare of Nigeria and Murielle Ahoure of the Ivory Coast.  Both were London finalists.  Okagbare was bronze medalist in the 2008 Olympic long jump.  She won a 100/long jump double at the 2010 NCAA Championships at Hayward Field while competing for UTEP.  Ahoure, a former national indoor 200-meter champ at Miami, won silver at last year’s World Indoor Championships in the 60 meters.

Taken all together, this is the strongest women’s 100-Meter field ever hosted at Historic Hayward Field.

Fans can follow the event lineups as all announced fields are posted at PreClassic.com.  The direct link to current start/entry lists is HERE and includes updates to previously announced fields.

Tickets for the 39^th annual edition of the Prefontaine Classic, to be held May 31-June 1 at Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore., are available now from PreClassic.com and from 1-800-WEBFOOT.  Sponsored by NIKE continuously since 1984, the Prefontaine Classic will be shown live to an international audience and by NBC Sports from 1:30 till 3:00 p.m. PT on June 1^st.

The Prefontaine Classic is the longest-running outdoor invitational track and field meet in America and is part of the elite IAAF Diamond League of meets held worldwide annually.  Last year’s Pre Classic presented the most 2012 Olympic gold medalists (20) of any invitational meet in the world.

Steve Prefontaine is a legend in the sport of track & field and is perhaps the most inspirational distance runner in American history.  Many call him the greatest ever.  He set a national high school 2-Mile record while at Coos Bay High School that lasted nearly two decades.  While competing for the University of Oregon, he won national cross country championships (3) and outdoor track 3-Mile/5000-meter championships (4) every time he competed, and never lost a collegiate race at any distance.  As a collegiate junior, he made the 1972 U.S. Olympic Team and nearly won an Olympic medal, finishing 4^th in the 5K at the 1972 Munich Olympics, at age 22.  After finishing college in 1973 and preparing for a return to the Olympics in 1976, he continued to improve, setting many American records.  His life ended tragically on May 30, 1975, the result of an auto accident, at age 24.  The Pre Classic began soon after and has been held every year since.