Barbadian hurdler Rasheeme Griffith set a blistering new national record of 49 seconds in the semi-finals of the men’s 400 metres hurdles Wednesday at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division One Outdoor Championships.
Competing for the University of Tennessee at the Mike A. Myers Stadium in Austin, Texas, Griffith ran an excellent personal best from lane nine to finish third in heat three and qualify for tonight’s final.
The 23-year-old eclipsed Victor Houston’s previous national record of 49.21 seconds from the 1988 Commonwealth Games in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
Griffith exited the blocks and remained equal to the field, holding level on the back stretch until the fifth hurdle when he came under pressure from Chris Robinson of the University of Alabama, who started swiftly in lane seven. (RW)
