James, Merritt to renew 400m rivalry
Olympic champion Kirani James will try to build on his sizzling
Shanghai performance when he leads a talent-loaded 400m field Saturday
at the Prefontaine Classic Diamond League athletics meeting.
James, who became Grenada's first Olympic medallist in any sport when
he won the 400m gold in London last year, clocked the best time in the
world this year of 44.02sec at the IAAF Diamond League stop in Shanghai
on May 18.In Shanghai, he got the better of 2008 Olympic gold medallist
LaShawn Merritt, leaving the American out for revenge on home soil.
Merritt, who has struggled back from a doping ban disgrace, didn't
contend in London, where he was injured in the heats.
He'll get a chance to test himself against the top five finishers
from London: James, silver medallist Luguelin Santos of Dominican
Republic, bronze medallist Lalonde Gordon of Trinidad and Tobago,
veteran Chris Brown of the Bahamas and Belgium's Kevin Borlee.
Although the 34-year-old Brown was shut out of the medals in the
individual race, he led the Bahamas to 4x400m relay gold in London.
AFP
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