NEW YORK - 2005 World Outdoor men's 400m hurdles champion Bershawn "Batman" Jackson will face a tough challenge from Trinidad & Tobago's 2009 World Outdoor Championships 400m bronze medalist Renny Quow in the men's 600 yards on January 29 at the 103rd Millrose Games in New York City.
The Millrose Games is the first stop of USA Track & Field's Visa Championship Series. The longest-running annual event held at fabled Madison Square Garden and one of the best indoor track and field meets in the world, The Millrose Games features some of America's and the world's top track and field talent. The meet will be televised live on ESPN2 from 8-10 p.m. Eastern Time.
Jackson is coming off a strong 2009 season where he successfully defended his USA men's 400m hurdles title, won the bronze medal at the World Athletics Championships in Berlin and posted wins at the Reebok Grand Prix in New York and the Prefontaine Classic in Eugene, Ore.
Jackson, who ended the 2009 season ranked #2 in the world for the second time in his career, last won the 600 yard race at Millrose in 2008 in 1:10.34. Additionally, Jackson was victorious at Millrose in 2007 when he crossed the finish line in 1:11.48, with Quow finishing as the runner-up in 1:14.02.
Quow greatly improved on his 2007 time at Millrose when he won the 600 yards at The Garden last year in 1 minute 11.32 seconds. A 2008 Olympic finalist, Quow finished first last year in the 400m at the Oslo Grand Prix, and finished as the runner-up at the Reebok Grand Prix in New York and at the Brussels Grand Prix before ending the season ranked #3 in the world by Track & Field News.
Lee, Myers, Knight & Barber considered favorites in highly anticipated women's 60 meters
2008 Olympic Games finalists Muna Lee and Marshevet (Hooker) Myers, defending Millrose champion Bianca Knight and reigning USA Indoor champion Lisa Barber will be the favorites to win in the women's 60 meters at this year's Millrose Games.
The 2009 USA Outdoor 100m and 200m runner-up, Lee was a two-time NCAA Indoor 60m champion ('03, '04) and was a finalist at the 2008 Olympic Games in the 100m (5th) and 200m (4th). The 2008 Olympic Trials 100m champion, Lee finished the 2009 season ranked #4 in the world at 200 meters (#2 in the U.S.) and #4 in the U.S. at 100m by Track & Field News.
The 2007 Millrose Games 60m runner-up in 7.32 seconds, Myers was the 2006 NCAA Indoor 60m and long jump champion. Myers, who was the 2005 NCAA 100m champion, finished fifth in the 100 meters at the 2009 USA Outdoor Championships and ended the year ranked #6 in the U.S. by T&FN.
Also keep an eye out for 2008 NCAA Indoor 200m champion Bianca Knight, who won the 60 meters at Millrose last year in 7.23 seconds, with Lee finishing as the runner-up in 7.28. Knight finished fifth in the 200 meters last year at the USA Outdoor Championships, and ended the year ranked #6 nationally in that event by T&FN.
2006 World Indoor and USA Indoor 60m champion Lisa Barber, who won the Indoor Visa Championship Series title that year, competed in a memorable 60m at the 2006 Millrose Games when she battled Jamaican Olympic gold medalist Veronica Campbell to the wire. The two crossed the finish line together in 7.10 seconds in what appeared to be a dead heat. A photo finish finally separated the two, with Campbell being declared the winner by the slimmest of margins.
The 2005 USA Outdoor 100m champion, Barber, who won the 2009 USA Indoor title in 7.15 seconds, won a gold medal at the 2005 World Outdoor Championships as a member of Team USA's 4x100m relay squad.
Vlasic drops out of Millrose Games
Two-time World champion and 2008 Olympic women's high jump silver medalist Blanka Vlasic of Croatia will not compete at the Millrose Games due to an illness. Through the 2007-2008 seasons, Vlasic had an unbeaten string of 34 victories that ended with her silver-medal winning performance at the Beijing Olympics.
For ticket information for the 103rd Millrose Games visit: www.millrose-games.com. USATF welcomes you to pay with your Visa.
For more information on the 2010 Millrose Games and the 2010 Visa Championship Series, visit: www.visachampionshipseries.com or www.millrose-games.com.
About USA Track & Field
USA Track & Field (USATF) is the National Governing Body for track and field, long-distance running and race walking in the United States. USATF encompasses the world's oldest organized sports, some of the most-watched events of Olympic broadcasts, the #1 high school and junior high school participatory sport and more than 30 million adult runners in the United States.
For more information on USATF, visit USATF.org.
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