Fifty-two-year-old Garth Robinson, a talented athlete with a passion for track and field, is on a mission to break the12-year-old age group world record of 22.44 seconds for the 200m. Last weekend, he came incredibly close, clocking an impressive 22.59 seconds. However, Robinson is determined to go even faster and secure his place in history.

Born in England, Garth Robinson's life took a significant turn when he moved to Jamaica in 1978. Growing up in the picturesque parish of Manchester, he attended Holmwood Technical High School. It was during his time at Holmwood that Robinson first delved into the world of track and field. He represented the school at the prestigious ISSA Boys Championships in 1989, showcasing his talent as a member of the 4x400m relay team.

Track and field is deeply ingrained in Jamaican culture, and Robinson's love for the sport grew naturally. He actively participated in school sports days, SDC meets, church meets, and more. Athletics became more than just a hobby; it became a passion.

Recently, a friend and his sister, Andrea Robinson, who competed internationally for USA Masters, encouraged Robinson, who now lives in the United States, to explore the world of Masters Athletics. Embracing the challenge, he set his sights on breaking records and representing his country at the Masters Championships.

Last summer, Robinson made notable progress, running 11.6 seconds in the 100m and 24.26 seconds in the 200m, securing second and third place, respectively. But it was this year that he truly shined. He achieved exceptional results, claiming victory indoors in both the 60m and 200m with times of 7.16 and 23.34 seconds, respectively. These times made him the fastest in the world for the 50-54 age group.

But Robinson's journey did not stop there.

At the USATF Masters Outdoor Track and Field Championships in North Carolina last weekend he defied expectations, clocking 10.88 seconds to win the 100m and an impressive 22.59 seconds to claim victory in the 200m, despite facing a challenging headwind of -1.6m/s.

Robinson's ultimate goal is to break the long-standing world record of 22.44 seconds set by Willie Gault in 2011. With his current form and determination, he believes he has what it takes to achieve this remarkable feat.

“The 10.88 and 22.59 exceeded my expectations. With the 100m time, I thought that’s good enough speed for a 21 or 22-second run, providing the conditions are suitable. My conditioning is good so the possibilities are there to run faster,” he told Sportsmax.TV. “I have another race in Indiana this weekend in Indiana, so we will see.”

While Robinson's heart longs to represent Jamaica, he is eager to compete overseas for the United States at the world Masters championships, provided his schedule, funding, and circumstances permit. The master's program in Jamaica is unfortunately not as developed as he would hope, leading him to explore opportunities abroad.

Dina Asher-Smith became the first British woman to break the 11-second barrier in the 100 metres on this day in 2015.

At the Sainsbury’s Anniversary Games, the then 19-year-old clocked a time of 10.99 seconds in her heat at London’s Olympic Stadium whilst also trimming 0.03 seconds from her own British record.

Even though Asher-Smith finished in fourth place behind Dafne Schippers in the final having run a time of 11.06, it did not overshadow her earlier achievement.

Asher-Smith said: “I’m in the 10 seconds now so I’m absolutely over the moon.

“I felt like I was in good shape, but feeling in good shape and then doing it are two very different things.

“When I crossed the line and saw the time I was beaming. I’m really, really happy. I was like, ‘What on earth have I just run?'”

The record for Asher-Smith launched her as a force on the world stage.

Winning Olympic bronze in the 4x100m relay in Rio in 2016, she also went on to complete a sprint double and anchored the sprint relay squad to win gold at the 2018 European Championships in Berlin.

Asher-Smith went on the achieve bigger things at the 2019 World Championships where she claimed silver in the 100 metres with a time of 10.83, and took the 200m title in 21.88, both British records.

Jamaican 800m national record holder, Navasky Anderson, expressed gratitude after running a season’s best 1:45.70, the second fastest time of his career, to finish second at the Under Armour Sunset Tour in Los Angeles on Saturday.

American Isaiah Harris took the win with 1:44.85 while John Rivera was third in 1:45.80.

The 23-year-old has had what he described as a “rough” 2023 season following up from an outstanding breakthrough year in 2022.

Prior to Saturday’s race, only his fifth race of the season, the Mississippi State Junior had a season’s best of 1:47.67 which he did to finish as runner-up at the National Championships earlier in July.

“I would be lying if I didn’t say it’s been a rough season, tempted with injuries, moments I felt like everything was going wrong, times when I felt like I was just failing everything but, through it all, I survived and I still had faith,” Anderson said in a post in Instagram after the race.

Anderson had an excellent season in 2022. The high point came at the NCAA Outdoor Championships in June where the former St. Jago man ran a personal best and national record 1:45.02 to finish second.

He went on to claim his first maiden Jamaican title later that month before competing at both the World Championships in Eugene and the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham. He reached the final in Birmingham, running 1:48.75 for fifth.

Although he won’t be at this year’s World Championships in Budapest having failed to achieve the 1:44.70 qualifying standard, Anderson believes that he will be able to get back to his 2022 self in the future.

“It’s not going to be easy, it’s going to be a challenge but those bad moments can be channeled into great performances. I’m still learning and stepping out into a new world…the world of elites and I’m ready to take on the world and do what I was born to do,” he said.

Noted track coach Gary Evans has shared his belief that his athlete, Kyron McMaster, is ready to contend for a medal at the upcoming 2023 World Championships in Budapest. Coach Evans believes that with the right preparation and mindset, McMaster can even dip below the elusive 47-second barrier at the World Championships in Budapest next month.

Last Thursday, McMaster secured a significant victory in Slovakia, winning the 400m hurdles in a season's best time of 47.26 seconds. At the P-T-S Meeting, the British Virgin Islands star raced to victory ahead of David Kendziera the USA, who clocked in at 48.95 seconds with Dany Brandt of Switzerland taking third place with a season-best time of 49.25 seconds.

McMaster, a two-time Commonwealth Games gold medallist, joined Evans’ group at the end of last season after spending the previous five years with Jamaican coach Lennox Graham, who is also the Assistant Coach at Clemson University.

Under Graham’s guidance, McMaster won two Commonwealth Games titles and was fourth at the Toyko Olympics in a lifetime best 47.08, a time that would have won the gold medal at every other Olympic Games except for 1992 when Kevin Young won in a then world record of 46.78 and in Tokyo where Karsten Warholm dropped a jaw-dropping 45.94 to win gold.

Two years on, Coach Evans believes the 26-year-old McMaster is now primed to achieve a new lifetime best and a place on the podium of a global championship.

Prior to McMaster’s season-best run in Slovakia, the BVI-born hurdler has been running 48s all season so his performance in Slovakia was somewhat surprising. Regarding McMaster's readiness and recent improvement, Coach Evans stated, "I do believe that he probably should have run 47 a little earlier. But the thing is sometimes when you get a kid from a new coach he has to get used to the program and then you do things a little differently."

In Evans’ training group McMaster trains with the likes of Steven Gardiner, an Olympic and World Champion, Matthew Hudson-Smith, a World Championship bronze medallist as well as Michael Cherry, a 400m standout. Working with them has helped McMaster get settled and improve. He just now needs to focus on the task at hand.

"Kyron studies hard, studies very, very hard and I told him, sometimes you're doing too much studying. You're trying to do my job, the agent's job. I just need you to run," the veteran coach said.

Speaking about the training plan to get McMaster to this stage before the World Championships, Coach Evans explained, "We worked on what we had to work on the track and when we step out on the track, just run... know that I got to run 400 metres but I got 10 sticks. That's one of the 10 items that's going to interrupt me and that's how we look at it now."

In Budapest, McMaster will face Warholm, American champion Rai Benjamin and the world champion, Alison dos Santos, all of whom have run 46 seconds for the 400m hurdles. For McMaster to get onto the podium, he has to be capable to dipping below 47 seconds.

Evans believes he is ready to do just that.

“[I] already told him to get ready to get a new tattoo (of his new personal best). I have a few goals when I'm coaching; two goals, we are going to win a medal and when we step on that track at the end of the season, we going to know we ran our PB."

Regarding McMaster's competitors, Coach Evans noted, "You got the big three; you got Santos back, you got Warholm, and you got Rai Benjamin, somebody's going to choke, somebody's going to make a mistake.

“Somebody's going to take a step back. One of them hurdlers is going to step back and do a 47. You got to be ready to say, ‘Okay, I need to make sure I step forward. It's like I told Matthew Hudson Smith last year when Stevie (Gardiner) stepped out the picture. Matthew Hudson, this is your time to go get your medal.”

Coach Evans further expressed his confidence in McMaster's potential to succeed, saying, "I think we got a good game plan that we're going come up with when we get there. Kyron, it's your time to step in the picture... You got to stay in front of them... Your foot on the gas. You got to be on the gas now."

McMaster races next at the Eddie Murphy Classic in Memphis, Tennessee on August 4. It will be his final race before departing for his medal hunt in Budapest.

“My objective is for him to run in Memphis where it'll be a great. It'll be a great field. You know CJ Allen that ran 47.8 and two other guys. A lot of people are going to use that Memphis race. For our people, that's their last race and then they're going across [to Budapest],” Evans concluded.

Trinidad and Tobago's Janae De Gannes etched her name in the record books as she secured the gold medal in the Long Jump event at the North American, Central American and Caribbean Athletics Associations (NACAC) Under-18 Championship held at the Estadio Nacional, San Jose, Costa Rica.

Representing Tobago, De Gannes displayed her prowess right from the start, shattering the previous record with a phenomenal jump of 6.11m on her first attempt. She continued to dominate the field, leaving her competitors in her wake. Her subsequent jumps included distances of 5.59m (third attempt), 5.99m (fifth attempt), and 6.06m (sixth attempt), further solidifying her position as the undisputed champion.

Coming close behind was Puerto Rican athlete Legna Edith Alvarez, who claimed the silver medal with an impressive jump of 6.08m. Meanwhile, Brooklyn Lyttle from Belize secured the bronze medal with her commendable attempt of 5.72m.

Zharnel Hughes had a premonition he would blitz the British 200m record in the specific time of 19.73 seconds ahead of doing so at Sunday’s sold-out London Diamond League meet.

The 28-year-old warmed up for next month’s World Championships in Budapest by impressively shaving 0.21 seconds off the previous national mark of 19.94, set by John Regis in 1993.

Hughes revealed post-race that he had earlier written his precise finishing time, which was only good enough for third place behind Noah Lyles and Letsile Tebogo, in a notebook.

His latest feat was witnessed by around 50,000 spectators at London Stadium and comes just a month after he broke Linford Christie’s 30-year-old 100m record when he ran 9.83 seconds in New York.

“It’s the exact time,” he said. “If you want to come around here, you can check it out.

“It depends how I am feeling and, if I know I am in good shape, I just write down a time and I use that time as a target.

“I don’t care about winning as long as I execute the plan that my coach wanted and we get the British record. I wanted to do it here on home soil and I did it.”

Hughes previously ran 19.77 with an illegal wind speed to claim the UK 200m title in Manchester earlier this month.

He burst out of the blocks on Sunday and pushed American world champion Lyles hard before his rival and Tebogo of Botswana moved clear on the home straight.

Hughes credited a “Kobe Bryant mentality” for his impressive recent results and warned he can become “much faster”.

“I’ve seen some little bits I can work on – and it’s exciting for me,” he said.

“I’m not pressured one bit. I am enjoying myself. I can get much faster.

“I spoke to you about that Kobe Bryant mentality. For me, I just wanted to go there and give it a great performance.”

Hughes broke away from his post-race interview to watch compatriot Dina Asher-Smith finish second in the women’s 100m, before Britain’s Jemma Reekie capped a stirring end to Sunday’s action by clinching 800m glory.

Former 200m world champion Asher-Smith crossed the line in 10.85 seconds, 0.10sec behind Marie-Josee Ta Lou of Ivory Coast, while compatriot Daryll Neita finished fourth.

“I am always disappointed not to win but this shows I am building,” said Asher-Smith.

“It is all about the end of August and Budapest, which isn’t a long way away, so I am excited.

“I managed to see the end of the men’s 200m and I am so pleased for Zharnel. British sprinting is doing so well.”

Zharnel Hughes warned he can “get much faster” after blitzing the British 200m record in front of a sold-out London Diamond League crowd.

The 28-year-old warmed up for next month’s World Championships in Budapest by shaving 0.21 seconds off the previous national mark of 19.94, set by John Regis in 1993.

His latest feat was witnessed by around 50,000 spectators at London Stadium and comes just a month after he broke Linford Christie’s 30-year-old 100m record when he ran 9.83 seconds in New York.

Yet the phenomenal time was only good enough for third place on the day as world champion Noah Lyles and Letsile Tebogo of Botswana claimed the top two podium spots.

“I wanted to do it here on home soil and I did it,” Hughes said of the record.

“I don’t care about winning as long as I execute the plan that my coach wanted and we get the British record.

“I’ve seen some little bits I can work on – and it’s exciting for me. I’m not pressured one bit. I am enjoying myself. I can get much faster.”

Hughes previously ran 19.77 with an illegal wind speed to claim the UK 200m title in Manchester earlier this month.

He burst out of the blocks on Sunday and pushed Lyles hard before his rival moved clear on the home straight.

Hughes forecasted his time in a notebook and credited a “Kobe Bryant mentality” for his impressive recent results.

“It’s the exact time,” he said. “If you want to come around here, you can check it out.

“It depends how I am feeling and, if I know I am in good shape, I just write down a time and I use that time as a target.

“I spoke to you about that Kobe Bryant mentality. For me, I just wanted to go there and give it a great performance.”

Hughes broke away from his post-race interview to watch compatriot Dina Asher-Smith finish second in the women’s 100m, before Britain’s Jemma Reekie capped a stirring end to Sunday’s meet by clinching 800m glory.

Former 200m world champion Asher-Smith crossed the line in 10.85 seconds, 0.10sec behind Marie-Josee Ta Lou of Ivory Coast, while compatriot Daryll Neita finished fourth.

“I am always disappointed not to win but this shows I am building,” said Asher-Smith.

“It is all about the end of August and Budapest, which isn’t a long way away, so I am excited.

“I managed to see the end of the men’s 200m and I am so pleased for Zharnel.

“British sprinting is doing so well.”

Zharnel Hughes smashed the 30-year-old British 200m record by clocking 19.73 seconds in front of a sell-out crowd at the London Diamond League.

The 28-year-old shaved 0.21 seconds off the previous mark of 19.94, set by John Regis at the World Championships in 1993, in finishing third at London Stadium.

His latest feat was witnessed by around 50,000 spectators and comes just a month after he broke Linford Christie’s 100m record when he ran 9.83 seconds in New York.

American world 200m champion Noah Lyles, who on Saturday backed Hughes for the British record, triumphed in 19.47 secs, while Letsile Tebogo of Botswana was second in 19.50 secs.

Hughes claimed he had earlier forecasted his record-breaking time.

“I did it again – I predicted it,” he said. “I wrote down that exact time this morning, at about 9.30am.

“I wanted to get the British record here on home soil and I did it.

“I don’t care about winning as long as I execute the time that my coach wanted and get the British record.”

Janieve Russell, Natoya Goule-Toppin and Shericka Jackson made the podium in their respective events at the London Diamond League meeting on Sunday.

In what was the last Diamond League meet before the 2023 World Athletics Championships in Budapest next month, Femke Bol produced the performance of the day with a record-break run in the 400m hurdles and Noah Lyles emerged victorious from stern battle with Letsile Tebogo in the 200m.

Russell continued her solid form this season after coming in second in the 400m hurdles at the London Diamond League on Sunday. However, her performance was overshadowed by the massive lifetime best performance of Bol of the Netherlands.

Russell, who won at the Jamaican trials earlier this month, clocked in a smart time of 53.75 but she was more than two seconds behind Bol, who joined the pantheon of two women who have run the event in under 52 seconds.

The European champion smashed her previous best of 52.03 when she stormed across the finish line in a world-leading 51.45. Only world record holder Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone and Dalilah Mohammed have run faster.

The world-leading time was also an Area Record, Diamond League record and National Record.

Shamier Little of the United States was third in 53.76 with Rushell Clayton fourth in a blanket finish where 0.02s separated second, third and fourth.

Goule-Toppin has been consistently fast over 800m this season and she showed that again Sunday with a new season’s best time of 1:57.61 for a second place finish in the 800m. She managed to hold off Uganda’s Halimah Nakaayi for set a new national record of 1:57.62 in finishing in third place.

Jemma Reekie of Great Britain won the keenly contested event in a new meet record of 1:57.30, a season’s best for the 25-year-old Briton.

An obviously fatigued Shericka Jackson, running her third race in a week, finished third in the 100m dash in which Marie Josee Ta Lou stormed to a new meet record of 10.75. Dina Asher-Smith took the runner-up spot in 10.85 with Jackson laboring through the line in 10.94 for third.

The men’s 200m was electrifying with Lyles just managing to hold of Letsile Tebogo to win in a new meet record and world-leading time of 19.47. Tebogo ran a brand new personal best of 19.50 for second place. It was a new lifetime best and African Area record for the youngster. In third was Zharnel Hughes who ran a new British record of 19.73.

Holloway, the two-time defending world champion, sped to a 13.01 clocking to win the 110m hurdles. Japan’s Shunsuke Izumiya was close behind in 13.06 while Jamal Britt of the USA crossing in 13.25 to edge out Olympic champion Hansle Parchment (13.26) for third place.

World-record holder Wayde van Niekerk won a close battle in the 400m over Bryce Deadmon and Vernon Norwood. The South African clocked 44.36 to edge Deadmon who came in second in 44.40 with Norwood not far behind in 44.46 for third place.

Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, Megan Tapper and Rajindra Campbell all secured victories at Saturday’s Meeting de Madrid, part of the World Athletics Continental Tour Silver Series.

Fraser-Pryce, aiming for her sixth World 100m title in Budapest next month, followed up a 10.82 clocking in her season opener in Lucerne on Thursday with a meet record 10.83 effort to win.

Spain’s Jael Bestue was second in 11.10 while Shashalee Forbes, who will also be on Jamaica’s 100m team in Budapest, was third in 11.11.

Olympic bronze medallist and reigning national champion, Megan Tapper, ran 12.69 to win the A Final of the women’s 100m hurdles ahead of the USA’s Tonea Marshall (12.74) and Liberia’s Ebony Marshall (12.81).

The A Final of the men’s 110m hurdles saw Tyler Mason and Orlando Bennett finish fourth and fifth with times of 13.41 and 13.43, respectively. The race was won by Switzerland’s Jason Joseph in a personal best 13.10 ahead of France’s Wilhelm Belocian (13.20) and Spain’s Enrique Llopis (13.35).

Fresh off a 9.99 effort to win in Lucerne on Thursday, Julian Forte produced a season’s best 20.35 for second in the 200m. The race was won by South Africa’s Luxolo Adams in 20.22 while France’s Ryan Zeze was third in 20.52.

In the field, Rajindra Campbell set a new personal best, meet record and national record to win the shot put.

The 27-year-old, who entered the competition with a personal best of 21.31m done in May this year, became the first Jamaican to break the 22m barrier with a throw of 22.22m to win and break the previous national record of 21.96m set by O’Dayne Richards in 2017.

American Roger Steen was second with 21.33m while Nigeria’s Chukwuebuka Enekwechi threw 21.30m for third.

Campbell’s throw is also put him joint-third in the world this year alongside New Zealand’s Tom Walsh. Only Americans Joe Kovacs with 22.69m and Ryan Crouser with his World Record 23.56m have thrown further this year.

After he achieved his previous personal best at the USATF Throws Festival, Campbell told The Jamaica Observer that he was confident he’d achieve the automatic World Championship qualifying standard, 21.40m, at some point during the season.

He then produced throws of 20.23m at the Music City Track Festival and 21.14m at the Arkansas Grand Prix in June.

In July, the former Ferncourt and Kingston College man became a national champion for the first time with 21.04 before, just two days ago, he threw 20.21m in Lucern.

LSU freshman, Brianna Lyston, has been named as the Louisiana State Writers Association (LSWA) Women’s Freshman of the Year for 2023.

The 2022 World U20 200m gold medallist enjoyed an indifferent freshman campaign for the Tigers.

Her best results came as a member of LSU’s 4x100m relay team. She was a member of their victorious quartet at the SEC Outdoor Championships where they ran 42.92 in May. The Tigers were also on the podium in the 4x100m at the NCAA Outdoor Championships in June. They ran a season’s best 42.52 for third.

Individually, the 19-year-old advanced to the semi-finals of the 200m at the NCAA Outdoor Championships in June.

A month earlier, she ran a season’s best of 23.05 in the heats at the SEC Outdoor Championships. She also achieved wind-assisted times of 22.92 and 22.75 at the NCAA East Regional.

Jamaica’s Adrian Kerr continued an excellent first season amongst the senior ranks with a massive personal best to win U23 100m gold on day one the NACAC Championships in San Jose, Costa Rica on Friday.

The 19-year-old recovered from a horrible start to step past the rest of the field and cross the line in an impressive 10.08. His countryman, Travis Williams, ran a personal best of his own with 10.12 for second while Puerto Rico’s Diego Gonzalez ran 10.22 for bronze.

This marks a massive improvement for Kerr who entered the Championships with a personal best of 10.22 done in April this year.

The U18 Boys section was won by Antigua & Barbuda’s Kasiya Daley in 10.56. Jamaica’s Gary Card was credited with the same time in second while Antigua & Barbuda got their second medal in the event through Dwayne Fleming (10.69).

The Women’s U23 section was won by the USA’s Mia Brahe-Pederson in a meet record 11.08. Trinidad & Tobago’s Leah Bertrand was second in 11.27 while BVI’s Beyonce Defreitas was third in 11.41.

Jamaica’s Theianna-Lee Terrelonge took gold in the U18 Girls section with a time of 11.41. Puerto Rico’s Frances Vazquez ran 11.50 for silver while Antigua & Barbuda’s La’Nica Locker was third in 11.54.

Shericka Jackson humbled a crack field to win the 200m in Monaco on Thursday where triple jump phenom Jaydon Hibbert defeated some of the world’s best jumpers in his first ever Diamond League meeting.

Going up against USA champion Gabby Thomas, the world leader at 21.60 and the talented professional newcomer Julien Alfred as well former European champion Dina Asher Smith, Jackson found herself challenged coming into the home straight but called her on superior strength and speed to win in 21.86.

Alfred, in only her second meet as a professional, ran a smart 22.08 for second place. Asher-Smith was third in a season-best 22.23.

With a month to go before the World Championships in Budapest, the world champion was pleased with the performance.

“It was great for me today. Last time, I was second here, so to come here and take the win, it is really really good. I had three competitions in a week so it is a bit hard for me. One more coming up, it will be London,” said Jackson, who was not entirely happy with the first part of her race.

“I do not think that the curve was as good as I wanted but I managed to go until the finish so it was good. I have one more coming up so I am glad I finished this one healthy. I keep training and keep competing.

“I had a hard training session yesterday and still I was able to run 21 so that is good. I want to make sure I am on the top of my shape in Budapest. “

Anthonique Strachan of the Bahamas, who ran a lifetime best of 22.15 at the Diamond League Meeting in Rabat in May, clocked in at 22.40 to finish fourth. Thomas, who was among the leaders early and was expected to be in the mix down the home stretch but faded badly to finish in seventh in 22.67.

Hibbert, meanwhile, suffered his first loss in the triple jump this season despite producing a fantastic effort of 17.66M that was four centimetres short of Hugues Fabrice Zango’s winning effort of 17.70m. The man from Burkino Faso snatched the win on the very last jump of the competition.

 Yasser Mohammed Triki of Algeria, who held the lead briefly after a season-best third-round jump of 17.32m, had to settle for third place.

Ackeem Blake was third in the 100m running 10.00 behind Kenya’s Ferdinand Omanyala, who took the win in 9.92 over Letsile Tebogo, who clocked in at 9.93.

Yohan Blake was fourth in 10.01 with Kishane Thompson fifth in 10.04.

The meet will be remembered by another breathtaking performance from Faith Kipyegon, who smashed the world record for the one mile run. The Kenyan clocked 4:07.64 breaking the previous record of 4:12.33 set by Sifan Hassan in 2019.

Nia Ali took a close win over compatriot Kendra Harrison in the 100m hurdles. The mother of three clocked in a personal-best, world-leading and meet record time of 12.30, just 0.01 ahead Harrison, the former world record holder.

Another American Alaysha Johnson was third in 12.39.

The men’s 400m hurdles was a firecracker of a race billed as a clash between world-record holder Karsten Warholm and the reigning world champion Alison dos Santos, who was running his first hurdles race after rehabilitating from knee surgery.

And for the first 300m it was a battle before Warholm pulled away from the struggling Brazilian to win in a Diamond League and world-leading 46.51, a meet record. Dos Santos ran 47.66 with American CJ Allen close behind in 47.84.

St Lucia sprint queen Julien Alfred has signed with Puma, the global sports apparel company announced on Friday.

The 22-year-old Alfred, the NCAA 100m champion, has experienced a meteoric rise through the rankings over the past 18 months, having gone undefeated at 100 metres in the 2022 NCAA season, and picking up a silver medal in the same event at the Commonwealth Games Birmingham 2022.

Her fine form has continued into 2023, with Alfred becoming the first woman in NCAA history to break the seven second barrier at 60 metres, and in doing so securing her spot as the all-time second fastest indoor sprinter at both 60 and 200 metres.

The seven-time NCAA Champion capped a remarkable first half to the year by taking gold at the Central American and Caribbean Games in San Salvador earlier this month.

“Julien is an incredible athlete, one we believe will continue to make history on the track,” said Pascal Rolling, Head of Sports Marketing at PUMA. “She is the true embodiment of forever faster and our ambition to be the fastest brand on the planet – we’re thrilled to have her join the PUMA family.”

“PUMA has such legendary status in athletics, so the decision to join their family was an easy one,” said Julien Alfred. “I feel that together we can achieve great things on and off the track.”

Now ranked in the top four at both 100 and 200 metres, Alfred will wear PUMA’s evoSPEED TOKYO NITRO track and field spikes, which offer the ultimate combination of power and propulsion thanks to PUMA’s NITRO Elite foam technology in the forefoot and a full-length Pebax plate

Alfred won her professional debut at the Diamond League meeting in Silesia on Sunday, clocking in at 9.89 to defeat the previously undefeated American Sha'Carri Richardson who ran 9.97.

American sprinter Gabby Thomas paid homage to her Jamaican roots on Thursday ahead of Friday’s Diamond League meeting in Monaco where she will take on a crack field over 200m that includes reigning world 200m champion Shericka Jackson.

It is well known that Thomas has Jamaican roots, something she is proud of and she enjoys the love and support of the island’s rabid track fans. On Thursday, she chose to set the record straight about how she feels about her Jamaican heritage.

Asked about her Jamaican connection, the Olympic bronze medallist responded, “So, my grandfather is actually Jamaican, he lives there, he is from there. My dad didn’t grow up there but he is Jamaican and he always likes to bring the culture home with me and made sure I was proud to be Jamaican.

“And I do really love the fan base in Jamaica, they have really been so amazing and supportive and I do make sure everyone knows that I am Jamaican because I do believe that is where I get my fast roots from. I am not going to sugar coat it because that’s what it is. And we grew up loving track and my family has always been a big track family so I if could just run, run well and make my grandmother and my dad proud, then I would have done my job.

Thomas, who holds the world-leading time of 21.60, will face a tough field that includes NCAA champion Julien Alfred of St Lucia as well as the talented Britons, Dina Asher-Smith and Daryll Neita and the dangerous Anthonique Strachan of the Bahamas, who has run a lifetime best of 22.15 so far this season