Williams, the Tokyo Olympics 4x100m gold medallist, clocked a fast 7.22 to win the dash ahead of Legacy Athletics’ Jura Levy, who ran 7.34.
Rohanna Wright of Swept Track Club ran 7.71 for third.
Blake was just as impressive, winning his short dash in 6.63 running into a negative wind, just holding off his more accomplished club-mate Yohan Blake, who clocked 6.64.
Emmanuel Archibald finished third in 6.70.
Williams, who has been training with the group since September, was chuffed about the performance.
“It felt very quick. I am just happy to be here to start the season,” she said, adding that her training has been going well, working on things that will make her better for the coming season.
“We have been working on endurance and the last part of races and this is just the start getting to the 100 and 200.”
The work, she said, is helping her get to her goals of running consistent 10.7s and 10.8s for the season ahead.
After just five months training in Jamaica, Williams said she feels at home and appreciates the support from the fans and her teammates at Titans.
“I am enjoying my coaches, my teammates and I am enjoying training,” said Williams, who races next in another 60m dash at the Gibson Relays o February 25.
“My teammates push me every day and they encourage me and I am so happy to have them.”
Like Williams, young Blake was pleased with pleased with the outcome.
“My training has been going good so far because I am healthy and I am ready," Blake said. "I have been putting in work and so I was expected to go out there, deliver, and that is what I did tonight.”
Williams, who turns 21, next month boasts a personal best of 7.04 while finishing fifth in the 60m final at the World Indoor Championships in Serbia in March, 2022.
It was a significant improvement on the 7.18 she ran at the Armory in New York in February 2020. Her outdoor 60m best of 7.15 was set at the National Stadium in Kingston in January that year.
The Tokyo Olympics gold medallist had trained with Coach Ato Boldon for a decade before making the move to Titans International last year citing a need for a change.
“I’m excited about this new chapter and happy to be training in Jamaica,” Williams said following the move to the club where she now trains under the guidance of coaches Gregory Little and Olympian Michael Frater.
After the Camperdown Classic, Williams is set to compete next at the Gibson Relays set to the final Saturday, February 25.
Swept Track Club’s Clarke, the current World U-20 record holder in the 400m hurdles, started the race in lane five while Racers Track Club’s Watson was in lane four.
It was a contrast in starts to the race for the two with Clarke going out hard over the first 300m and Watson going out in his usual reserved style.
The final 100m saw Clarke, who is still only 19 and doesn’t turn 20 until July, using his 400m hurdles strength to narrowly hold off a fast-finishing Watson.
In what was the first race of the season for both men, Clarke’s winning time was 46.05 while Watson ran 46.10 in second. Terry Thomas of Titans International was third in 46.97.
Watson is looking to build on a 2023 season that saw him run 44.22 to claim his maiden World 400m title in Budapest last August. Clarke also had a fantastic maiden World Championships. He produced a national record and world U-20 record 47.34 in the semi-finals of the 400m hurdles before finishing fourth in the final with a 48.07 effort.
Heat four saw two-time World Championship 100m finalist Oblique Seville of Racers Track Club produce a personal best 47.44 to open his season with a win. Titans International and Antigua & Barbuda’s Darion Skerritt ran a personal best 48.43 in second while Calabar’s Craig Prendergast, also hailing from Antigua & Barbuda, ran 48.49, also a personal best in third.
Heat three was won by Racers Track Club’s Kuron Griffith in a personal best 48.79 ahead of Swept Track Club’s Jalan Bennett (50.29) and Mico University College’s Quentin McLean (50.59).
Racers Track Club had the top three finishers in heat two. Guyana’s Shamar Horatio won in a personal best 49.02 ahead of Jamaican national U-20 100m record holder Bouwahjgie Nkrumie (49.73) and Adrian Taffe (50.27). Both Nkrumie and Taffe ran personal bests.
Elite Performance Track Club’s Waseem Williams ran a personal best 49.71 to win the first heat. Swept Track Club’s Junior Harris was second with a personal best 50.91 while York Castle’s Jerrain Hunter ran a personal best 51.74 in third.
The women’s invitational 400m final was won by Elite Performance’s Kerrica Hill in a personal best 56.26 ahead of Ferncourt’s Alliea Whitter (59.36) and Serena Richard of Legacy Athletics (59.84).
The World Athletics Championships are scheduled to be held in Budapest in August and the soon-to-be 21-year-old Williams is keen to earn an individual spot on Jamaica’s team.
Williams narrowly missed out on a spot in the 100m for the World Championships in Oregon in 2022. In the 100m finals at the Jamaican National Championships last June, Williams led the star-studded field before her race fell apart in the final 15m which saw slip to fourth; the precious third place snatched at the death by NCAA silver-medallist Kemba Nelson, who ran a personal best 10.88.
Having switched camps in the offseason, Williams and her new coaches Gregory Little and Michael Frater, are keen on making sure that her race does not fall apart like that anymore.
After her 7.22 60m dash at the Camperdown Classic on Saturday, Coach Little said she could have been better but their focus has been on what happens after 60.
“She looked pretty good and she is doing what we are teaching her in training,” said Little,
“I would probably give (her) a 75, a B. I think she could do much better.
“We are more focusing on the end part of her race (but) so far when she comes out of her drive phase she looked good and we are looking forward to a good season for her once everything goes smoothly with her health.”
In that area of concern, Little said Williams is making strides.
“She is making good progress regarding her strength endurance and we are working more on her speed endurance, she is adapting to the programme very well,” he said.
Both Williams and the Blakes (Ackeem and Yohan) – 6.63 and 6.64, respectively, were equally graded because, “We have been doing nothing really to look sharp,” he said.
“We just came out to see where we are at because basically we just had three block sessions so far so we said let us test where are at now because we are more focused on strength endurance and speed endurance at the moment.”
So, for the time being it’s another 60 and a couple of half-lappers before the real season begins.
“We have a 60m at Gibson Relays and then we move forward to two 200m next month and then that’s it for March. We will decide what we’re going to do in April,” said Little fully aware that all eyes are on his two young charges this season.
