FILE
From left, Powell and Simpson.

Anthony Foster, Freelance Writer

World 100m record holder, Asafa Powell, and Sherone Simpson, the fastest female in both short sprints, will headline today's Queen's/Grace Jackson Track Meet at the Stadium East Complex.

Both athletes will, however, compete in the longest sprint over 400m, as they launch into their endurance programme, a key facet of their 2007 build-up to the World Athletics Championships.

Powell equalled his 9.77 seconds World Record mark twice in an outstanding 2006 where he recorded an amazing 12 sub-10 clockings, a record for any athlete; while Simpson's 10.82 (100m) and 22.00 (200m) twice were unmatched in female sprinting last year.

Such performances earned them a plethora of awards last year, including the World Athlete of the Year (male) title and on that basis, the Jamaicans have set their sights firmly on grabbing the world titles later this year.

The 400s are set to start with the junior school athletes leading off at 11:30 a.m.

Other stars

Apart from Powell and Simpson, who dominated the 100m and 200m sprints in 2006, World Championships 100m silver medallist Michael Frater, world 100m hurdles bronze medallist Brigitte Foster-Hylton are also among the stars down for the sixth staging of the meet. They will also run the 400m.

National 400m hurdles champion Melaine Walker and World Championships mile-relay silver medallist Shericka Williams will contest the 800m event.

The meet will also have an international flavour with World Championships silver medallist Darrell Brown of Trinidad and Tobago, Commonwealth Games 100m silver medallist Geraldine Pillay of South Africa and Jamaican-born British high jumper, Germaine Mason.

Looking forward

At the launch over a week ago Pillay, who has joined-up with local Maximum Velocity Peformance (MVP) Track Club, said just thinking about running a 400m makes her "nervous".

She said: "I have not run a 400m other than in training and prior to coming to Jamaica I haven't been doing any 400m training, so this has been a new adjustment to me.

"I look forward to it because I know it's just going to benefit me in the long run," she added.

Over 100 teams and 200 athletes are expected at this year's meet, which will see Simpson, the Commonwealth Games 200m champion, honoured, along with Joy Watson, who is a volunteer and Queen's/Grace Jackson Track Meet committee member.

The meet, to be sponsored by Glaxco SmithKlein, Scotiabank, HD Hopwood, Addidas, Trafalgar Travel, Lillians Ltd., Singer, Rainbow Awnings, Art Print, Areomar, and Mercedes Benz, will see action in the 200m, 400m, 800m, high jump, triple jump, 400m hurdles, 4x100m and 4x400m.