Salwa Eid Naser is very proud to run 48.67 sec in the 400m at the Grand Slam Track in Kingston
Six years ago, at the World Athletics Championships in Doha, Qatar, Bahrain’s Salwa Eid Naser set the Khalifa International Stadium on fire with a stunning win in the women’s 400-metre final, clocking 48.14 seconds to capture the gold medal.
The time by the Nigeria-born athlete was the third-fastest ever in the event, behind Marita Koch of Germany (47.60) and Jarmila Kratochvílova of Czechoslovakia (47.99).
At the Grand Slam meet on Saturday inside the National Stadium, the 26-year-old delighted fans with a special display. In what was the performance of the evening, she sprinted to a world-leading 48.67 to win the one-lap event, pushing the United States’ Gabby Thomas to a personal best of 49.14 for second, with Olympic champion Marileidy Paulino of the Dominican Republic third in 49.35. It was a stadium record and the fastest time ever recorded in the event on local soil by a female athlete.
A training partner of Paulino, it was the first time in 10 meetings that Salwa had gotten the better of her opponent, and after her jaw-dropping run, the 26-year-old was pleased with her outstanding performance.
“I am extremely proud of my achievement, and I feel very good. This is my third-fastest ever and the best in only my second race of the season,” said Salwa, who a week earlier had opened up with a 48.94 clocking in Bayaguana, Dominican Republic, where she also raced to a 22.45-second time in the 200m.
The Tokyo World Championships is some five months away, but her performance on Saturday has put her in pole position for gold. It was a dominant performance, as she took control from the first 150m to destroy a quality field.
“My body felt good, and I think I am approaching the same shape I was in when I ran that fast time in Doha. Going forward, I just want to stay healthy, and once I do that, I think I can go sub-48 seconds, but I am not putting any pressure on myself,” she said.
She also spoke about her experience competing in Jamaica for the first time. “I feel very comfortable competing here in Jamaica, as the people here are like me, and the atmosphere was lovely,” said the silver medallist at last year’s Olympic Games in Paris.
