Despite getting out of the blockes with the slowest reaction time (0.171) Shamar Sands won the 60m hurdles at the “Meeting IAAF du Pas-de-Calais” in Liévin, France on Wednesday in a personal best and new Bahamian National record time of 7.49 seconds, knocking of 0.09 seconds.  

In Glasgow Scotland at the Aviva International Indoor Match on January 31st Sands equaled the record that he set as a freshman in 2003 for the Auburn Tigers when he captured second at the National Collegiate Athletic Associations Indoor Championships in 7.59 seconds.  He then set a new record on Sunday with a victory in 7.58 in Ghent, Belgium.

Following Sands on Wednesday was Frenchman Ladji Doucouré,  the 110m hurdles World Champion in 2005 and 4th in Beijing last year placed second in 7.52, his fastest time since 2005. The favourite Borisov, World Season Leader with 7.45 took third place in 7.54.

Cuban star Dayron Robles felt a sharp pain after the first hurdle and jogged through the finish line of his 60m Hurdle heat.  Sands won that heat in 7.60.  Russian Yevgeniy Borisov was second in the heat in 7.64 and Robles was eventually timed at 9.94.

Sands continues to prove that there is no limit to his abilities when it comes to running fast over the hurdles.

After the record setting performance Sands described the race; “I was trying to make a statement. I needed to hurdle clean and I did an excellent job over the hurdles today. With my coach Henry Rolle in Auburn (Alabama), my training went very well this winter. I got my strength in the gym and I know I’m naturally fast but weaker on technique so I worked a lot of that aspect.”
 
Meanwhile, robles manager Tony Campbell indicated later in the night that the Cuban star, who got treatment in Liévin and was walking without pain, will cancel Dusseldorf meeting but will still travel to the German city to see a doctor get a diagnosis.