Story by Austin Cannon
Photos by Luke Nankivell
Few things are faster than the athletes who set eight world-best marks this weekend at the 105th Drake Relays at Drake Stadium.
The first was set on Friday night at Hy-Vee Night at the Drake Relays in the men’s 110-meter hurdles.
Jamaican Hansle Parchment won the race in 13.14 seconds, also setting a new Drake Relays record. He beat David Oliver, the previous record holder by .09 seconds.
The men’s “Moscow World Championship Rematch” high jump competition also set a new Relays record.
Canadian Derek Drouin set a new Canadian record with a jump of 7 feet, 10.5 inches, shattering the old record of 7-7. Erik Kynard and Dusty Jonas, along with Douin, cleared 7-8.5, breaking Kynard’s Drake Stadium record he set in 2012.
Olympian LaShawn Merritt came within .03 seconds of tying the men’s 400-meter Relays record of 44.41 seconds set by Michael Johnson in 1996. The two runners behind him, Kirani James and Leguelin Santos also beat the then world-leading time.
The fourth world-leading time of the night came in the men’s 400-meter hurdles where Michael Tinsley ran a time of 48.57 seconds.
The three top finishers in the women’s 1,500-meters also broke the previous world-leading mark. Heather Obiri won the race in a time of 4:04.88.
On Saturday, more world-best marks fell.
Kristi Castlin set a new mark in the women’s 100-meter hurdles. She beat world No. 1 Brianna Rollins by five thousandths of a second in 12.571 seconds.
Chaunte Lowe won the women’s high jump, clearing the bar at 6-5, another world-best mark for 2014.
Aman Wote beat crushed the field by seven seconds, setting a world-leading mark of 3:53.39 in the men’s mile.
Renaud Lavillenie took his first Relays title in the men’s pole vault event. He cleared 18 feet, 8.25 inches. Stave Lewis also cleared the height but had more misses than Lavillenie.
On the collegiate side of things, Illinois and Arkansas tied to win the Hy-Vee Cup. Both teams scored 34 points. Arkansas won the 4×400-meter relay in 3:03.89, beating the Illini.
Baylor claimed the Hy-Vee Cup for the women, clinching it well before they too won the 4×400 in a time of 3:31.88.
