By BRENT STUBBS

Chief Sports Editor

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net    

After stopping and not completing in his previous meet, Bahamian Olympic and world champion Steven Gardiner got back on track with a victory over the weekend.

At the PVA HP Meet, Gardiner pulled away from the field to easily take the tape unchallenged in his winning time of 45.68 seconds in his specialty in the men’s 400 metres.

The 29-year-old Bahamian national record holder at 43.48 was well ahead of the second place finisher Jarrett Gentles, who got second in 46.33.

The time was well off the qualifying time of 44.85 for the 2025 World Championships scheduled for Tokyo, Japan, from September 13-21. But it was a good sign heading into the Bahamas Association of Athletic Associations’ 2025 National Championships, set for August 1-3 at the Thomas A. Robinson Track and Field Stadium.

Going into the meet, Gardiner has the fastest time this year by a Bahamian. The second best time of a Bahamian is by Wendell Miller, who ran 45.67 on February 22 in Kingston, Jamaica, where he has been training for the last few years.

In the last race on July 12 at the 2025 Ed Murphey Track Classic in Memphis, Tennessee, Gardiner stopped running heading into the final two 200m. 

He didn’t finish as 17-year-old American Quincy Wilson won, lowering his world under-18 record to 44.10.