Mark Everett Wins 800 Meters in England

American 800-meter runner Mark Everett ran his fastest and British javelin thrower Steve Backley uncorked his best throw at a track and field meet in Sheffield, England.

Beaten by Kenyan Billy Konchellah and Brazilian Jose-Luis Barbosa at the World Championships in Tokyo last month, Everett beat them both at Don Valley Stadium with a time of 1 minute 43.93 seconds. Konchellah was second and Barbosa fourth, behind Britain’s Kevin McKay.

Backley, the former world record-holder who failed to qualify at Tokyo, threw 299 feet 9 inches on his first throw to easily beat a strong field in the javelin.

Michael Johnson, the world champion at 200 meters, won in 19.94 seconds, the third consecutive time he has gone under 20 seconds.

In the women’s 3,000, Mary Slaney ran 8:43.19 to beat 10,000-meter world champion Liz McColgan.