Beijing Olympic 200-meter gold medalist Veronica Campbell-Brown of Jamaica made a triumphant return to Osaka at the Japan Grand Prix athletics meet Saturday. Campbell-Brown, who won the 100m gold medal at the 2007 world championships at the same stadium, eased aside Japanese national record holder Chisato Fukushima with a time of 11.02 seconds in the women's 100m. Fukushima, who set new national 100m and 200m records earlier this month, was second in 11.27, followed by Melissa Breen of Australia in 11.47. “It is always good to win,” said Campbell-Brown. “My aim this season is to get a personal best in the 100m. That's what I'm working on. This is my first 100m and I look forward to many more for the rest of the season,” added the world 60m indoor champion. The men's sprint title went to fellow Jamaican Michael Frater, who clocked 10.24 to beat American Travis Padgett into second in 10.34 and Japan's Naoki Tsukahara third in 10.36. World champion Dani Samuels of Australia won the women's discus throw with a mark of 63.75m while Olympic champion Stephanie Brown Trafton of the United States was pushed into fourth. American Becky Breisch was second in 62.40m, Zinaida Sendriute of Lithuania third in 58.22 and Brown Trafton 56.65m. Athens Olympic gold medalist Koji Murofushi came back after a long injury lay-off but finished third with a throw of 77.86m in the men's hammer throw won by Dilshod Nazarov of Tajikistan in 78.84m. World bronze medalist Aleksey Zagornyi of Russia was sixth with a mark of 75.15m. Other winners included American Michael Rodgers in the 200m, Japan's Masato Yokota in the 800m, Caleb Mwangangi Ndiku of Kenya in the 1,500m and China's Shi Dongpeng in the 110m hurdles in the absence of star Liu Xiang. The women's winners included Joanne Cuddihy of Ireland in the 400m, American Ginnie Crawford in the 100m hurdles, Australia's Lauren Boden in the 400m hurdles, and American Melinda Owen in the pole vaul The Osaka meet was the second leg of the 13-round World Challenge Meeting series.
