Watson wins race in Japan

By Sean Rooney on May 22, 2018.

Medicine Hat News

Asia proved to be a great place for Sage Watson to run this month.

The professional sprinter from Seven Persons won the 400 metre hurdles Sunday at the Osaka Golden Grand Prix in Japan, one week after taking third at the IAAF’s Diamond League series event in Shanghai, China.

“I’m so sad to leave Japan! I absolutely loved my trip,” Watson wrote on her Twitter account Monday. “Thank you to the wonderful people at the Seikeo Gold Grand Prix for having me!”

Watson finished in 55.58 seconds, four-tenths faster than Ukraine’s Viktoriya Tkachuk. Panama’s Gianna Woodruff was third in 56.05 seconds.

It wasn’t Watson’s fastest time in the event this season. She put up a 55.23-second run May 12 in Shanghai amidst a stronger field, and that’s still shy of her personal best 54.52 seconds from when she won the NCAA title last summer in Eugene, Oregon.

Watson is on the start list for this coming weekend’s next Diamond League event, the Prefontaine Classic in Eugene.