Grand Slam Track is a Franklin Field homecoming for Penn Relays veterans who are now pros

The familiar names at Franklin Field for Grand Slam Track this weekend aren’t just those who’ve made it big in the Olympics.

Quite a few of the 96 competitors have run in the Penn Relays over the years, whether in college or high school, and sometimes in Olympic Development races. For them, it was a chance to come back to a familiar place, but this time in a different context.

And for Downingtown native Josh Hoey, it was a chance to genuinely come home.

“I ran here my whole time in high school, and just coming back and getting to run in front of the home fans was truly special,” said the 800-meter runner, who finished second behind last year’s Olympic silver medalist Marco Arop of Canada.

» READ MORE: Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone is happy to be Grand Slam Track’s biggest star at Franklin Field

The 25-year-old, who turned pro out of Bishop Shanahan High instead of going to college at Oregon, took to the track having won the American and world indoor titles in the 800 earlier this year. When he was invited to be in the “challenger” category, he jumped at the chance.

“I was like, ‘Man, I’ve got to be there,” Hoey said. “When I finally got the invitation, it was like, wow, this is really special.”

The potential for a big crowd was alluring to Grand Slam Track’s organizers, and they got it. Though an official attendance wasn’t announced yet when this article was published, the eye test said enough. With only the lower deck of Franklin Field open for sale, the south stands — where the finish line was — were packed. Across the way, the north stands were about one-third full for a view of the 200-meter sprints’ starting line.

“I’ve been here in different phases of my life — high school, collegiate, and now professionally,” said women’s 400-meter hurdler Shamier Little, who went to perennial Relays power Texas A&M. “The atmosphere was very cool just walking out, just reminding me of my college days.”

She laughed as she said that included “some PTSD, some good memories.”

» READ MORE: Olympic 1,500-meter champion Cole Hocker made his Franklin Field debut at Grand Slam Track

Isabella Whitaker, who ran in the women’s 400-meter sprint, also had a kind of homecoming. She ran collegiately at Penn from 2020-24 (and at the Relays in high school before then), then did a graduate year at Arkansas and just recently turned pro.

“I didn’t expect that many people to cheer for me, so I was pleasantly surprised by the support I heard,” she said. “It’s super-special, because I really do cherish my time here, and I owe a lot to Penn track for what they did for me. It’s fun to come back as sort of not a new and improved version of myself, but just an older, wiser version.”

Go farther back in the history books, and you’ll find Jamaican 100-meter hurdler Ackera Nugent. She admitted she almost forgot she ran at the Relays with Excelsior High in 2019, in the high school girls’ 4x100. On Saturday, she won the women’s 100-meter hurdles, topping Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone in the day’s last event.

How different was it to run here as a pro?

“It’s very different,” she said, with one unsurprising exception. “The crowd came out like they normally do at Penn Relays. I really like the support and everything — the one thing I don’t like is it’s very cold, but it’s a very nice track.”

The mood rubbed off on some first-timers too. Perhaps the best to show that was Brazilian 400-meter hurdler Alison dos Santos, who warmed up in a Union jersey and then won the race.

“I think the place is amazing,” he said. “Just knowing how history happened around this stadium, around the track.”

And where did he get the Union jersey from? He didn’t say, but he was happy to back the local soccer team even if he didn’t know much about it.

“I think it’s nice just come to a place and support the area in a way,” dos Santos said. “I love jerseys, I love futebol [the sport’s Portuguese name], so just be able to show that to the world.”

» READ MORE: Why Grand Slam Track picked Franklin Field as one of its venues

Women’s 400-meter hurdles: Anna Cockrell, United States, 54.04 seconds

Men’s 400-meter hurdles: Alison dos Santos, Brazil, 48.11

Men’s 800 meters: Marco Arop, Canada, 1:43.38

Men’s 200 meters: Kenny Bednarek, United States, 19.95

Women’s 200 meters: Melissa Jefferson-Wooden, 21.99

Women’s 3,000 meters: Agnes Jebet Ngetich, Kenya, 8:43.61

Women’s 400-meter sprint: Marileidy Paulino, Dominican Republic, 49.12

Men’s 400-meter sprint: Matthew Hudson-Smith, Great Britain, 44.51

Women’s 1,500 meters: Diribe Welteji, Ethiopia, 3:58.04

Men’s 110-meter hurdles: Jamal Britt, United States, 13:08

Women’s 100-meter hurdles: Ackera Nugent, Jamaica, 12.44

» READ MORE: Penn wants Philly to be a global track destination. Bringing more pros to town is part of it.