Upset win for Riley at Drake Relays

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP):

Jamaican Olympian Andrew Riley is still celebrating after a confidence-boosting win over Olympic champion American Aries Merritt in the 110 metres hurdles at the Drake Relays last weekend.

Riley clocked 13.43 seconds, with world record holder Merritt second in 13.48, running against a strong 3-2 metres per second headwind.

Although it's still early in the season, Riley was impressive in holding off the top-three Olympic finishers at a stadium he has run at dating to his time with the Fighting Illini.

confidence booster

Riley, the 2012 NCAA winner for Illinois at Drake Stadium, beat London Games gold medallist Merritt - along with the silver and bronze winners from the recent Olympics.

"It's a perfect confidence-booster considering I've been doing a lot these days. I didn't know if I was going to come here and win this race because the big picture is down the road," Riley said.

The 169-pound Merritt said a strong headwind of 3.2 metres per second played a factor in his time, which left him second behind Riley.

"The wind, it was very strong. Into your face," Merritt said. "A hurdler of my stature, I'm really thin ... so a lot of wind is not going to bode well for me. That being said, Andrew Riley is a really, really good athlete. He's a really muscular guy. He deserves a lot of praise."

London silver medallist Jason Richardson was disqualified because of a false start and Jamaican Hansle Parchment, third in the Olympics, ran a disappointing 14.33 for seventh.

American Michael Tinsley won the 400 hurdles in 48.55, while Iowa native Jenny Simpson rolled to the women's 1,500 title in a meet-record 4:03.35.

Luguelin Santos of the Dominican Republic, the silver medallist in London, easily won the men's 400m over the likes of American Jeremy Wariner. Dusty Jonas won the men's high jump at 7-7.