On July 4, 2026, the second annual Barbados Grand Prix brought top track and field talent from across the Caribbean to the Usain Bolt Sports Complex, where Grenada’s men’s 4×400-meter relay team delivered a standout performance that fell just short of rewriting the country’s athletics history books.
The young national quartet, made up of Shaquane Toussaint, Joshem Sylvester, Devonni Ferguson, and Michael Francois, put on a gritty display of speed and teamwork to claim a silver medal finish, crossing the line with a blistering time of 3:05.77. The result came down to a fraction of a second: host nation Barbados edged out Grenada by just 0.13 seconds to take the top spot on the podium, clocking 3:05.64.
Sunday’s result marks a major turning point for Grenada’s long sprint relay program. At the inaugural 2025 edition of the Barbados Grand Prix, the 4x400m squad suffered a devastating disqualification, even as the country’s short sprinters broke a new national record. One year on, the team executed smooth, clean baton handoffs and came within 1.5 seconds of the country’s long-standing senior national record, which has stood unbroken for 15 years. That 3:04.27 mark was set back in 2011 by a legendary Grenadian team featuring Olympic champion Kirani James, Rondell Bartholomew, Joel Redhead, and Junior Charles.
Speaking after the race, Wayne McSween, Grenada’s head coach and team manager, praised his athletes’ performance while acknowledging the near miss. “The boys did very well,” McSween said. “I was really hoping for the national record this time around, but it didn’t happen. Hopefully soon.”
Beyond the traditional national team competition, the 2026 meet experimented with an innovative franchise-based exhibition format, which invited top regional athletes to compete for local Barbadian franchise teams. Three of Grenada’s elite sprinters accepted invitations to join these rosters, including the country’s own legendary 400m star Kirani James.
Competing for the Panthers franchise, James made just his second competitive appearance of the 2026 track season as he works his way back to peak championship form. The multiple Olympic and world champion placed fourth in the open men’s 400-meter event with a time of 46.08 seconds. National short sprint record holder Nazzio John, also running for the Panthers, claimed sixth place in a stacked men’s 200-meter field, stopping the clock at 20.92 seconds. Relay team member Toussaint pulled off double duty at the meet, competing in the open men’s 100-meter dash ahead of his 4x400m commitment, finishing fifth in his heat with a time of 10.50 seconds.
The relay team’s 2026 result represents clear, consistent progress for the program: the squad shaved nearly a full second off its previous best time of 3:06.56, clocked at the May Whitsuntide Games earlier this year. With the squad closing in on the 15-year record and Grenada’s top sprinters building critical momentum ahead of the peak summer competitive season, local coaching staff remain confident that the long-standing 2011 record will fall in the near future.