STILL displaying spring in his aging legs, veteran Eric Shawn Cray clocked 50.18 seconds to bag the bronze medal in the men’s 400-meter hurdles race of the Miramar Invitational meet, a World Athletics Continental Tour Silver event, at the Ansin Sports Complex in Miramar, Florida over the weekend.
Eyeing a return to the Olympics since making his debut in the Rio Summer Games in 2016, Cray, 35, finished third behind American Tokyo Olympian David Kendziera and Dominican Yeral Nunez, who finished first and second, respectively, in 49.65 and 49.69 seconds.
“Fastest opener since 2016,” noted Cray of his start to the US athletic outdoor season that earned him World Athletic ranking points plus $900 (around P50,000) as he pursues a spot in the Paris Olympic Games.
The six-time Southeast Asian Games 400-meter hurdles king, who has a personal best of 48.98 seconds in the event, is chasing the entry standard of 48.70 seconds before the cut-off date of June 30 to boost his chances of making it to the Paris Summer Games.
Under the revised World Athletics Olympic qualifying process, only the first 25 athletes who match or surpass the qualifying time, with a maximum three per country, will make it outright to the Olympics while the other 15 will qualify through the Olympic rankings.
Cray is currently No. 36 in the World Best Rankings but should rise after his strong finish in the Miramar Invitational meet.
