adidas Dream Race By Race Previews

adidas Dream Mile and 100 2015

Jun 12, 2015

Dream Girls 100 Preview: No Ties Allowed For Hill & Daniels

Both sophomore Candace Hill and senior Teahna Daniels are tied for the US #1 all-conditions time in the 100 meter dash as both have clocked sizzling, but wind aided personal best times of 11.15 during the 2015 outdoor season. However, there will be no allowance of a tie on Saturday in the adidas Dream girls 100. Only one can be the winner.

Daniels has the experience being a runner-up in the Dream 100 a year ago to eventual World Junior 200 meter champion Kaylin Whitney, who turned pro earlier this year signing with Nike as a high school junior in Florida. Daniels, also from Florida, was expecting to take over the spotlight with Whitney’s departure from the high school scene in Florida and nationally.

She was off to great start in doing that earlier in 2015 when she won the indoor national title in the 60 meter dash and picked up major victories at the Texas Relays and Florida Relays. However, a hamstring injury in the last half of her outdoor season slowed her down and forced her to be very cautious with her effort in races at the Florida State Meet and a preliminary 200 at the Golden South Classic. Before she competes at US Junior Nationals later this month and heads off to the University of Texas at summer’s end, Daniels wants to become the Dream 100 champion.

Standing in her way of picking up the “W” at Icahn Stadium will be 100 and 200 meter national leader Candace Hill from Rockdale County High School in Georgia. As a freshmen, Hill became an outdoor national champion in both the 100 and 200. She has yet to be defeated in high school and just last weekend clocked lifetime bests in both the 100 at 11.15 and 200 at 22.76 in wind-aided efforts at the Great Southwest Classic in Albuquerque.

Hill has a very bright future ahead of her, but Daniels wants to own the present and not let the sophomore steal her time and opportunity to the be fastest high school girl in the country.

Two others to watch as well in the race will be Golden South Classic winner and qualifier Khalifa St. Fort from Florida and Shameil English from Jamaica.

St. Fort, a junior, was formerly a member of the great St. Thomas Aquinas program in South Florida, but left the team this past season to be coached by her private coach in Olympian and NBC track commentator Ato Boldon. She had to beat arguably the toughest field among the auto qualifier races to get here at the Golden South Classic including her two former St. Thomas Aquinas teammates Krystal Sparling and Diamond Spaulding as she clocked a lifetime 100 best of 11.43 in her Dream 100 clinching win.

Last weekend, she competed at the Trinidad & Tobago trials for the World Youth Championships, which will be held later this summer in Columbia. She qualified and this weekend is just one of many big stages she will compete on this summer while being mentored by one of the sport’s greatest all-time performers and ambassadors in Boldon.

The lone Jamaican in the field in Shameil English is a very intriguing entrant to see how she performs against some of the top American high school sprinters. Only 15 years old, English has run times of 11.59 in the 100 and 23.38. She will likely be at the World Youth Championships this summer as well with the likes of St. Fort and Hill. The adidas Dream 100 could actually be an early preview for the World Youth Championships 100 meter finals in July!

adidas Dream Girls 100 Field

1. TAYLOR BENNETT (Klein Collins TX - 2016) - Invited

2. TEAHNA DANIELS (First Academy FL - 2015) - Invited

3. SHANIEL ENGLISH (St. Jago, Jamaica - 2017) - Invited

4. HALIE HAZZARD (St. Anthony's NY - 2017) - New York Relays Auto Qualifier

5. CANDACE HILL (Rockdale County GA - 2017) - Invited

6. SYDNEI MURPHY (Apex NC - 2015) - Raleigh Relays Auto Qualifier

7. KHALIFA ST. FORT (St. Thomas Aquinas FL - 2015) - Golden South Classic Auto Qualifier