Jereem “The Dream” Richards produced a golden run at the Oregon Relays, in the United States, yesterday.

The Trinidad and Tobago track star stopped the clock at a season’s best 20.26 seconds to secure top spot in the men’s 200 metres event.

Richards forced Josephus Lyles–the brother of world champion NoahÑinto second spot, the American getting to the line in 20.46. Jamaica’s Christopher Taylor was a distant third in 20.73, while American Rodney Rowe and Frenchman Jimmy Vicaut finished fourth and fifth, respectively, clocking 20.76 and 21.05.

Ahead of the Oregon Relays, Richards was ninth on the 2021 world outdoor performance list with a 20.30 seconds run in Florida, two Fridays ago. Thanks to yesterday’s 20.26 clocking, the reigning Commonwealth Games men’s 200m champion climbed one spot to eighth. Another T&T sprinter, Dwight St Hillaire is seventh at 20.25. American Terrance Laird is the world leader at 19.81.

Richards was part of the T&T team selected for the May 1 and 2 World Athletics Relays in Silesia, Poland, but later withdrawn because of Covid-19 challenges. He was expected to compete in the men’s 4x100m and 4x200m events. The World Relays meet was an opportunity for the 4×1 team to qualify for the July 23 to August 8 Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan.

“I’m a little bit disappointed that we will not have this opportunity to qualify the team,” Richards told the Sunday Express, “but there will be other opportunities throughout the year. Also, I understand that we are still in a pandemic. I hope we can run relays together locally and in the US to qualify.”

Two T&T relay teams have already qualified for the Tokyo Games–men’s 4x400m and women’s 4x100m. Neither team was part of T&T’s Silesia21 plans. At the last edition of the World Relays, in Yokohama, Japan two years ago, Deon Lendore, Richards, Asa Guevara and Machel Cedenio teamed up for top spot in the men’s 4x400m relay.

“I am also disappointed,” Richards said, “that we didn’t get to defend our title.”