A total of eight Grand Slam Track champions were crowned on the last night of the event in Miami
The final night of the second Grand Slam Track meet lit up Miramar, Florida on Sunday (May 4), as eight athletes were officially named champions, wrapping up a weekend packed with high stakes, big performances, and returning champions from the previous event in Kingston.
Among the standout moments was the dominant showing by Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone, the first athlete ever signed by Grand Slam Track. After delivering a world-leading 52.07 in the 400m hurdles on Saturday, the double Olympic gold medallist returned with even more fire.
Lining up for the 400m, she took the win in 49.69, a season’s best, and clinched 24 points to retain her Slam title and a $100,000 prize. Her consistent performances keep her in contention for the overall Grand Slam champion title, which carries an additional $100,000 reward for the athlete with the most cumulative points across all four events.
“I’m just happy with where we’re at. I think it was a good progression from the first Slam until now,” McLaughlin-Levrone said. “It shows you what you have to work on, shows you where you’re at. Just a great crowd. I’m excited for the next Slam and grateful to walk away now as a double Slam champion.
“The league is just bringing so much excitement to the sport. I can see this being something that in years to come people are going to want to join. I understand it’s new. There’s a lot of questions around it but I think each one is just getting better and better and the times are getting faster and faster. It’s a great opportunity for the sports, for track and for the athletes.”
Heptathlete Anna Hall, returning to the 400m for the first time since June 2023, impressed with a 51.68 finish, securing eight points and third place in the overall standings. Hall had also placed third in the 400m hurdles (54.43). Jamaica’s Andrenette Knight showed her strength by taking second in the hurdles (54.08) and third in the 400m (51.80), placing her second overall.
Closing out the night was the men’s 200m, where Kenny Bednarek proved once again why he’s one of the top sprinters on the circuit. Mirroring McLaughlin-Levrone’s back-to-back wins, Bednarek took to the track with a world-leading 19.84 (0.2) to secure maximum points. Just a day prior, he had posted a wind-assisted 9.79 in the 100m.
“I felt pretty good throughout the first race and second race. Everything felt smooth, felt easy, I’m in really good shape right now,” said Bednarek. “This race was just to execute and dominate the field and that’s what I did. Going to Philly and LA, I’m feeling pretty confident about what I can do down there.
“It was hard for me to get into 100m when it comes to other leagues but Grand Slam gives me the opportunity to hone my skills when it comes to 100m. All I needed was experience and just having this format is helping me to see where I’m at against all these top athletes. Also it’s helping me getting ready for trials.”
Behind Bednarek, the battle for second was intense. Great Britain’s Zharnel Hughes and Jamaica’s Oblique Seville were neck-and-neck down the final stretch, both stopping the clock at 20.13. The edge went to Hughes, but Seville’s runner-up finish in the 100m (9.84) gave him the advantage in the overall rankings, just one point ahead of Hughes, who had posted 9.87 in that event.
Another winner from Kingston who won in Miami was Brazil’s Alison Dos Santos. The Olympic bronze medallist captured the 400m hurdles in 47.97 before returning the next day to run a personal best of 44.53 in the open 400m. The top three finishers in that race also mirrored the overall standings: Americans Chris Robinson (44.86) and Caleb Dean (45.18) claimed second and third, respectively.
The wave of repeat winners continued as Grant Fisher rebounded in style to take the 5000m crown, just two days after a narrow defeat in the 3000m. After being edged out by Ireland’s Andrew Coscoran in Friday night’s showdown, Fisher was ready to show his speed in the 5000m in order to win his title.
As the 5000m unfolded, Fisher bided his time in the pack before making a decisive move with a few laps to go. No one was able to respond when he broke away from the pack, giving him the luxury of soaking in the cheers from the crowd during the final 100m. He crossed the line in 13:40.32, earning enough points to bring his total to 20 and secure yet another $100,000 payday.
He said: “I need to be able to win in a wide variety of ways. The first Slam in Jamaica I won with my kick but it didn’t work two days ago so we needed to switch up the strategy and lean in to what I’m really good at and that’s making it hard for a long time so I wanted to move pretty far out so people really had a lot to think about.
“I got some daylight and kept on the gas for quite a while. When we got to about 100m to go I realized I had enough cushion that I could chill out that last 100m.
“The 5000m still doesn’t get much love so to have a full house, have the crowd responding to your moves, it felt good. Ultimately this entire series is about entertainment. It’s about bringing more eyes to the sport so me enjoying it and being myself is good for everybody and I hope people’s personalities shine out there.”
Coscoran, who had taken third in the 5000m with a time of 13:46.30, still managed to finish second overall thanks to his earlier win. Rounding out the top three was Cooper Teare, while Great Britain’s George Mills placed fourth with eight points. Fellow Brit Sam Atkin took sixth, with five points in total.
However, not every Kingston champion managed to repeat their success. France’s Sasha Zhoya, who had won the men’s Short Hurdles in Kingston, was edged out in Miami by Challenger Trey Cunningham. Cunningham entered the 100m flat on top of the leaderboard after his 110m hurdles win and matched his personal best of 10.17 (0.7) to take the victory. Zhoya also hit a personal best at 10.36 but settled for second overall. Jamal Britt secured third place with a matching personal best of 10.20.
The night also saw a national record-breaking performance as Marileidy Paulino of the Dominican Republic delivered in the women’s 200m. Clocking 22.30 (1.0), Paulino not only set a new national mark but also secured her second win of the weekend, having earlier taken the 400m in a season’s best of 49.21. With back-to-back victories, she walked away with a perfect 24-point total.
Salwa Eid Naser kept close pressure on Paulino, finishing second in both the 400m and 200m to secure runner-up in the overall standings. Isabella Whittaker completed the top three overall, while Great Britain’s Amber Anning placed seventh after clocking 50.85 in the 400m and 22.97 in the 200m.
In the women’s 3000m (Long Distance) the race came down to a dramatic sprint finish. Kenya’s Agnes Ngetich had set the tone early and led much of the race, but in the final 200m, Ethiopia’s Hirut Meshesha surged past both Ngetich and Medina Eisa to take the win in a personal best of 8:23.14. Eisa and Ngietch also ran PB’s with Eisa clocking 8:23.08 for second place, while Ngetich’s 8:22.72 secured third in the race and the overall Grand Slam Long Distance title.
The women’s Short Distance saw redemption for Kenya’s Mary Moraa, who bounced back from Kingston where she was a DNS in the 1500m to win the 800m in Miami with a time of 1:59.51. She ran 4:24.44 in the 1500m, which was enough to land her third in the overall standings.
Taking the top spot overall was Ethiopia’s Freweyni Hailu, who followed up her 1500m win (4:06.96) with a strong third-place finish in the 800m (1:59.84). Nikki Hiltz, consistent across both meets, earned another pair of second-place finishes, just as she did in Kingston, to finish second overall once again.
With two Slams down and two to go, the action now shifts to Philadelphia, where the third Grand Slam Track will take place from May 30 to June 1.
