CLEMENT HURDLES COMPETITION IN 400-METER RACE RUNS FASTEST TIME THIS YEAR.Byline: Billy Witz Staff Writer CARSON - Kerron Clement Kerron Clement (born 31 October 1985 in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago) is an American sprinter who holds the indoor world record for the 400m sprint. Clement's family moved to the United States in 1998, where he became a successful high school athlete at La Porte, is so fast he broke Michael Johnson's long-standing 400-meter indoor record, so throwing some hurdles in front of him isn't much of an impediment. Clement, 19, turned in the performance of the week Sundayat the U.S. Outdoor Track and Field Championships, blazing to a 400-meter victory in 47.24 seconds - the fastest time in the world since 1998. ``It was perfect,'' Clement said. ``I trusted my step and gave it a great effort.'' Clement, who at 6-foot-2 and 184 pounds brings a physical presence to the hurdles, seems a perfect fit for the event. After chopping his steps over the final hurdles in winning the NCAA NCAA abbr. National Collegiate Athletic Association title two weeks ago and again in the semifinals on Saturday, Clement ran right through them all Sunday without breaking down. That enabled him to hold off 22-year-old Bershawn Jackson Bershawn Jackson (born May 8, 1983 in Dade County, Florida) is an American athlete, competing mainly in 400 m hurdles but also 400 m. Jackson has won many medals at junior level, as well as winning 400 m hurdles at the 2nd IAAF World Athletics Final in Monaco 2004. who, despite having to come from behind in lane one, was right with Clement until the final barrier before finishing in 47.80. James Carter "James Carter" is the name of a number of notable people:
It turned out to be quite a weekend for men hurdlers. On Friday night, 110 hurdlers Allen Johnson
Allen K. Johnson (born March 1, 1971) is a hurdling athlete and won Olympic Gold in the 110 metre high hurdles at the 1996 games in Atlanta, Georgia. , Dominique Arnold Dominique Arnold (born September 14, 1973) is an American hurdling athlete. He holds the second-fastest all-time performance in the 110 metre high hurdles, with a time of 12.90 s (+1.1 m/s). He also holds the American record in that event. and Terrence Trammell Terrence R. Trammell (born November 23, 1978 to Julie and Roger Trammell in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S.) is a track and field athlete who won the silver medal in the 110 meter hurdles at both the 2000 and 2004 Summer Olympics. posted the three fastest times in the world this year. ``The 110 was historic,'' said former 110 world-record holder Renaldo Nehemiah Renaldo "Skeets" Nehemiah (born March 24, 1959 in Newark, New Jersey), is an American athlete who dominated the 110 m hurdle event from 1978 until 1981. He was the world record holder and the first man to run the high hurdles in under 13 seconds. , now an agent. ``It's been a long time coming to see our guys advance the sport. In the 400, you don't know Don't know (DK, DKed) "Don't know the trade." A Street expression used whenever one party lacks knowledge of a trade or receives conflicting instructions from the other party. if they're going to handle the pressure - it's very intense in Europe - but you've got a couple of kids loaded with talent. If they stay healthy good things are going to happen.'' If Clement can carry Sunday's form into the European season, it should set up an August showdown at the world championships in Helskinki, Finland with defending Olympic and world champion Felix Sanchez of the Dominican Republic. Sanchez, who attended USC An abbreviation for U.S. Code. , was at the Home Depot Center Saturday, but did not attend Sunday, according to friends. Clement eclipsed Sanchez's personal best, 47.25, but Sanchez hadn't lost a race in three years until pulling up with an injury last September. Clement's coach at Florida, Mike Holloway, said Sanchez isn't in their thoughts. ``We don't talk about Felix Sanchez,'' Holloway said. ``We don't know his race plan. I tell people this all the time - it's not football or basketball, where you can change your game plan and fool people. ``Felix is the best guy in the world and we respect him, but we're not sitting back at my office trying to figure out a way to beat Felix Sanchez. We're trying to figure out a way to see how good we can make Kerron Clement be.'' One way has been to convince Clement he can take 13 steps between every hurdle - fewer than typical runners and a technique that among Americans only legendary Edwin Moses and world record holder Kevin Young have been able to master. ``It took us to this point to trust his fitness, to trust his steps,'' Holloway said. There will also be pressure from Clement, who recently signed with Nike, to step away from the hurdles, which aren't as lucrative as the 400. He plans to run a 400-meter race this summer, and Holloway said he'd run on the 4x400 relay team in Helsinki if asked. For now, though, Clement considers himself a hurdler, and Holloway isn't about to argue. ``As long as he tells me he's a hurdler that's what he is,'' Holloway said. ``I'm not a coach that believes in pushing guys to do things. We had a talk maybe 10 minutes after he ran a 44.5 (at the NCAA championships), he smiled and told me, `Coach, I'm a hurdler.' All right, done deal - you're a hurdler.'' Billy Witz, (818) 713-3621 billy.witz(at)dailynews.com CAPTION(S): photo Photo: CLEMENT |
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