Bayanda Walaza storms to historic 9.89 at Serbia Athletics Meeting
South Africa’s Bayanda Walaza produced the standout performance of the fifth Serbia Athletics Meeting in Smederevo, equalling his personal best of 9.89 to record the fastest 100m ever run on Serbian soil.
The Smederevo Fortress Stadium welcomed a strong international field on Wednesday, September 2, with several leading athletes delivering impressive performances across the programme.
Walaza dominated the men’s 100m, charging to victory in 9.89 with a following wind of 0.6 m/s. The South African finished well clear of Jamaica’s Kadrian Goldson, who placed second in 10.04, while Canada’s Jerome Blake completed the top three in 10.06.
Men's 100m Results
| Place | Name | Time | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bayanda Walaza | 9.89 | 0.165 | PB |
| 2 | Kadrian Goldson | 10.04 | 0.143 | |
| 3 | Jerome Blake | 10.06 | 0.153 | |
| 4 | Ronnie Baker | 10.08 | 0.151 | |
| 5 | Abdul-Rasheed Saminu | 10.11 | 0.158 | |
| 6 | Brandon Hicklin | 10.12 | 0.133 | |
| 7 | Max Thomas | 10.16 | 0.174 | (.156) |
| 8 | Aaron Brown | 10.16 | 0.152 | (.157) |
The men’s 400m also produced one of the best performances of the evening. Venezuela’s Javier Gómez set a personal best of 44.58 to claim victory ahead of Gabriel Moronta of the Dominican Republic, who clocked 44.68. Australia’s Reece Holder finished third in 44.90.
Jamaica secured the top two places in the women’s 100m. Lavanya Williams took the victory in 11.00, followed by compatriot Sabrina Dockery in 11.11. Liranyi Alonso of the Dominican Republic finished third in 11.12.
Ackera Nugent added another Jamaican victory in the women’s 100m hurdles, stopping the clock at 12.56. American Rayniah Jones placed second in 12.71, while Italy’s Giada Carmassi finished third in 12.93.
South Africa’s Mondray Barnard won the men’s 110m hurdles in 13.35. Norway’s Antoine Andrews was second in 13.39, with South Africa’s Antonio Alkana taking third in 13.53.
American Shamier Little prevailed in the women’s 400m hurdles in 54.79. Canada’s Savannah Sutherland crossed the line second in 55.30, while Zimbabwe’s Ashley Miller placed third in 55.37.
The men’s 1500m produced one of the closest finishes of the meeting. American Gary Martin held off Kenya’s Danson Kiplangat to win in 3:33.53, just 0.07 ahead of Kiplangat’s 3:33.60. Abel Teffra of the United States completed the podium in 3:34.51.
Bahrain’s Nelly Jepkosgei claimed the women’s 1500m title in 4:04.82. Ethiopia’s Adanech Anbesa finished second with a personal best of 4:05.38, while American Margot Appleton took third in 4:06.43.
In the men’s shot put, American Payton Otterdahl secured victory with a best throw of 21.10m. Italy’s Zane Weir finished second with 20.57m, while Nick Ponzio placed third with 20.30m.
Brazil’s Jucilene de Lima won the women’s javelin with a throw of 60.70m. Poland’s Małgorzata Maślak-Głuchowska followed with 58.76m, and Germany’s Julia Ulbricht completed the top three with 57.73m.
Gabriela Petrova of Bulgaria led the women’s triple jump with 14.10m. Germany’s Ruth Hildebrand set a personal best of 14.00m to finish second, while compatriot Caroline Joyeux placed third with 13.79m.
American Isaac Grimes won the men’s long jump with a best effort of 7.82m. Norway’s Henrik Flåtnes finished just three centimetres behind with 7.79m, while Croatia’s Roko Farkaš took third with 7.68m.
The fifth Serbia Athletics Meeting delivered a string of internationally competitive performances, but the evening belonged to Walaza. His 9.89 will enter the record books as the fastest 100m ever witnessed on Serbian soil and one of the finest sprint performances in the country’s athletics history.
Article source: Serbian Athletics
