Spearmon Records World Best Time in 200 Meters

UA Sports Information- Friday, July 22, 2005 --- FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. - Former Arkansas NCAA champion Wallace Spearmon Jr. set a new 2005 world-best time in the 200-meters on Friday on his way to winning the event at the Norwich Union London Grand Prix. Running in lane seven, Spearmon blazed to a time of 19.89 besting his own previous top time of 19.91 set earlier this year. Spearmon also narrowly missed breaking the 200-meter British record of Michael Johnson. The former U.S. Olympic star clocked a record 19.85 in the event on British soil in the summer of 1990. Spearmon outran Jamaican star Usian Bolt and former Razorback teammate Tyson Gay to take the tape. Bolt and Gay finished second and third, respectively, with identical times of 19.99. Bolt joined Spearmon and Gay as the only sprinters in the world to run under 20 seconds this year. All three sprinters crossed the finish line ahead of world 200-meter champion John Capel of the United States. Capel finished a distant seventh place with a time of 20.47. Spearmon and Gay will continue their trek across Europe next week when they compete at the Helsinki Grand Prix on July 25. The meet is a precursor to the World Championships to be held at the same venue in August. The Golden Leagues Bislett Games in Oslo, Norway will follow the Helsinki Grand Prix on the schedule on July 29. Spearmon is slated to run his first professional 400 meters at that event in Oslo. Spearmon only ran one 400-meter race competitively at Arkansas. He matched a school record with a time of 46.16 last January at the Randal Tyson Track Center. Spearmon has never competed in an outdoor 400-meter race at the collegiate or professional level.