After winning $300,000 and defeating Gabby Thomas, Melissa Jefferson makes her feelings known about setting PB and World Lead

Melissa Jefferson-Wooden is on a roll at the Grand Slam Track League. The 24-year-old sprinter recently defeated Gabby Thomas in the 200m Grand Slam Track event in Philadelphia to cement her position as a leading sprinter at the track event. Jefferson also set a new world-leading 10.73 seconds in the women's short sprints [100m] category at the Grand Slam Track meet held in Philadelphia.

Jefferson recently shared a glimpse of her preparations for the grand finale in Los Angeles from June 27 onwards. The 24-year-old sprinter also clarified in her Instagram post that her journey is far from over.

Jefferson captioned her recent Instagram post:

" 'Dream chasin’ , catching all my goals' 3xSlam Champion , 200m PB 🤯, 100m PB & World Lead 😤 @grandslamtrack Philly did not disappoint !! See yall good folks in LA 🫡‼️One Day, One Practice, One Meet at a Time ✨"

Melissa Jefferson will be seen in action next at the grand finale of the Grand Slam Track event. The final meet of the Grand Slam Track league will be at the Drake Stadium in Los Angeles from June 27-29.

Melissa Jefferson reflected on winning her second Grand Slam Track title

Melissa Jefferson [Left] in action at the Grand Slam Track League in Philadelphia [Image Source: Getty]

Melissa Jefferson-Wooden is undoubtedly a successful athlete who is now giving tough competition to Olympic champion Gabby Thomas in the 200m. In an interview with Athletics Weekly in early May, the 24-year-old sprinter opened up about winning two consecutive Grand Slam titles in a row in Kingston and Miami.

"It feels amazing job is always to come out here and execute to the best of my ability and I'm getting more used to doing that just literally listening and listening to my coach and do what it is he wants me to do and I'm getting I'm reaping the benefits of it," Jefferson remarked [0:03 onwards].

Before the Grand Slam Track event, Melissa Jefferson had won a bronze medal in the women's 100m event at the Paris Olympics, behind Julien Alfred of St. Lucia and her teammate, Sha'Carri Richardson.

Jefferson also contributed to Team USA's Olympic gold medal in the women's 4x100m relay event at the quadrennial event. Melissa Jefferson will also aim to ensure a golden hat-trick in the relay event at the World Championships, which will be held later this year in Tokyo.

About the author

Animesh Pandey is a seasoned content writer at Sportskeeda with over eight years of experience, having previously worked as an intern for Follow Your Sport before joining SK as a columnist in 2017. A graduate with a Bachelor of Commerce in Marketing, he also worked at TFI Media Private Limited and contributed as an intern for the movie website Nettv4u.

He has extensively covered events from World Championships to the Olympics, providing insights and analyses that resonate with his audience. His belief in mastering the basics and delivering accurate, relevant, and ethical information through thorough research is reflected in his work.

He was notably invited to the National Sports and Adventure Awards 2018 at Rashtrapati Bhavan after winning a MyGov quiz on Indian Sports, where he engaged with celebrated athletes such as Rahi Sarnobat, Hima Das, Jinson Johnson, Saikhom Mirabai Chanu, and Subedar Neeraj Chopra, who also happens to be his favorite Olympian.

Despite being a field hockey enthusiast, Animesh's most cherished Olympic moments include Wayde Van Niekerk's unexpected world record in the 400 meters at Rio and Chopra's historic gold medal in Tokyo.

When not immersed in writing or watching the Olympics, Animesh indulges in his love for movies, embracing quality cinema regardless of the language.

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Edited by Samya Majumdar