Matthew Hudson-Smith, Kenny Bednarek, Diribe Welteji, and Gabby Thomas became the first set of athletes to walk away with USD$100,000 each after topping their respective event groups at the inaugural Grand Slam Track Series (GST) held at the National Stadium in Kingston on Saturday night.
Despite modest attendance, the athletes put on a show for those in the stands—and fans following around the world—with thrilling back-to-back performances across two days of elite competition.
Great Britain’s Matthew Hudson-Smith etched his name in the GST history books by becoming the first-ever Long Sprints Champion. The Olympic 400m silver medallist capped a remarkable weekend by taking victory in the men’s 200m on Saturday night in 20.77 seconds, adding to his second-place finish in Friday's 400m.
His combined 20 points (12 from the 200m, 8 from the 400m) secured the top spot in the men's long sprints category and the hefty prize purse.
Hudson-Smith just edged Trinidad and Tobago’s Jereem Richards (20.81), while Jamaica’s Deandre Watkin rounded out the podium in 20.91. Friday’s 400m winner Christopher Bailey finished tied for fourth (20.93) with Vernon Norwood, taking his overall points tally to 16—just shy of the winning mark.
American Kenny Bednarek was clinical across both sprint events to emerge as the men’s short sprints champion. After outdueling Oblique Seville in Friday’s 100m, Bednarek returned to cruise through the 200m in 20.07, collecting a perfect 24 points in the process.
Britain’s Zharnel Hughes placed second in the 200m in 20.37, followed by Fred Kerley in 20.39. Seville, despite a gutsy effort, was edged out of the top spots and finished fifth in 20.43, bringing his two-day total to 13 points.
Ethiopia’s Diribe Welteji claimed the women’s short-distance title after a pair of strong runs in the 800m and 1500m. Welteji clocked 1:58.29 for second place in the 800m behind America’s Nikki Hiltz, then returned on Saturday to take the 1500m in 4:04.51, securing 12 more points and bringing her total to 20.
Hiltz, who had earlier run a world-leading 1:58.23 in the 800m, placed third in the 1500m (4:05.39) for 6 more points—bringing her to 18 overall, just behind the Ethiopian star.
Olympic and World medallist Gabby Thomas was composed and classy across both her events. She opened with a solid victory in the 200m on Friday night (22.67) and returned on Saturday to clock 49.14 for second place in the 400m behind Bahrain’s Salwa Eid Naser (48.67).
Thomas’ 20 points (12 for the 200m win, 8 for the 400m runner-up) made her untouchable in the standings, with Dominican Republic’s Marileidy Paulino (49.35 in the 400m) taking third overall with 14 points.
Each GST meet rewards the most consistent athletes across two events in their specialty category—short sprints, long sprints, short distance, long distance, and hurdles—with a USD$100,000 prize, while the remaining Racers earn descending payouts ranging from $50,000 to $10,000 based on their final placement.
Athletes also accumulate points toward a season-long championship, where the top male and female Racers after all four meets will receive an additional USD$100,000 bonus.
The crowd turnout that was light on Friday doubled in size on Saturday. However, the performances on the track were of the highest quality, signalling that once logistics and local engagement are fine-tuned, GST has the potential to reshape how elite athletics is consumed outside of traditional championships.
Photos: Grand Slam Track