A Golden 400

Note: The Francena McCorory photo was previously misattributed. The credit belongs to Photorun.NET.

The 106th Millrose Games’ women’s 400 meters will comprise a golden trio of Olympic champions. Their names especially should be familiar to Big Apple track & field followers as two are New York natives and the other has been at her best when competing in New York City.

Brooklyn-born Natasha Hastings and Mary Wineberg along with Francena McCorory, whose 50.06 at the 2012 adidas Grand Prix at Icahn Stadium is a personal best, all have claimed Olympic gold medals in the 4x400m relay.

"This should be one of the most exciting and entertaining races of the meet," said Dr. Norbert Sander, Executive Director of the Armory Foundation.

Both Hastings and Wineberg were members of Team USA’s 4x400 gold medal relay in the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. Hastings, a graduate of New York City’s A. Philip Randolph Campus High School and the University of South Carolina, ran on a gold-medal relay at an IAAF global event five straight years (2007-11). Last year she took 400m bronze at the World Indoor Championship in Turkey, but didn't make Team USA at the Trials.

Yet last Saturday she came back strong, establishing this year’s world-leading 400m time (52.11) at the Five Nations Match in Glasgow, Scotland. A handful of time zones away the same day at The Armory, Wineberg won the 400m dash in the New Balance Games just .01 seconds off Hastings' pace.

Wineberg started her running career in New York innocently enough as a 4-year-old during a Block Party Street Race. Ever since then she's been running to fame. The University of Cincinnati Hall of Fame sprinter — where she is a volunteer assistant track coach — hopes to use the Millrose Games as a pivotal springboard to the 2013 World Championships in Moscow.

McCorory is the most recent 4x400m gold medal champ as she ran USA's third leg in the 2012 Olympics in London that helped defeat runner-up Russia by more than three seconds. McCorory was a member of the 2011 USA gold-medal 4x400 squad during the World Championships in Daegu, South Korea. Her individual resume at Hampton University includes an NCAA Outdoor championship and two Indoor titles. She ran 50.54 to break Diane Dixon’s 19-year-old NCAA indoor record with her 2010 win.

University of Arizona senior Georganne Moline no doubt will challenge the talented trio. Moline finished fifth in the 2012 Olympic 400-meter hurdles with a personal best 53.92.

To stay atop all the Millrose Games' news, please visit Millrose-Games.org. Here are the announcements to date:

• Wanamaker Mile Fields Announced
• Millrose Coming to ESPN in 2013
• Millrose Schedule Announced
• Charismatic Leapers Coming To Millrose
• Symmonds, Solomon To Reunite
• Flower Power Comes To Millrose
• Lagat To Chase Records At Millrose Again
• Jager, Ritz Join Lagat, Levins & Lalang In Two-Mile
• Richardson Hurdles Into Millrose Games
• London Gold Medalists Suhr, Reese Commit
• DeLoach To Face Reese In Millrose Long Jump
• An Unique Millrose Opportunity
• Millrose Trials Yield High School Fields