Shanghai - Tyson Gay clocked the second best time in 100 metres history at the Shanghai Grand Prix meet on Sunday, clocking 9.69 seconds. The American raised his personal best 9.71 from the recent world championships in Berlin by two hundredths of a second. Only Jamaican Usain Bolt has run faster in his world record 9.58 at the Berlin worlds. Bolt also has a 9.69 run, his previous record from 2008.
Former world record holder Asafa Powell was second in 9.85 seconds and Darvis Patton of the US was third in 9.89 seconds.
The women's 100m also saw a superfast 10.64 from American Carmelita Jeter, making her joint second on the all-time list with Jamaican legend Merlene Ottey. The 21-year-old world record from Florence Griffith Joyner stands at 10.49 seconds.
The Shanghai meet also saw the return to action after more than a year of China 110m hurdles hero Liu Xiang from an Achilles tendon injury.
Liu finished second in a photo-finish as he and American winner Terrence Trammell both timed on 13.15 seconds.
Liu had shocked the whole country when he limped off the track ahead of his heat at the Beijing Olympics last year.
Russian icon Yelena Isinbayeva won the pole vault with 4.85m before failing to raise her world record again to 5.07m.
