Eugene, OR (My Sportsbook) - LaShawn Merritt will be headed to his first Olympic Games after winning the men's 400 meters Thursday at the U.S. Track & Field trials from Hayward Field.

Merritt posted a winning time of 44 seconds flat, finishing ahead of Jeremy Wariner, who won gold at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens. The duo also finished 1-2 at the 2007 World Championships in Osaka with Wariner taking gold and Merritt picking up silver.

Wariner, who posted a time of 44.20 seconds, is the top-ranked 400-meter runner in the world. In addition to his gold medals in Athens and Osaka, he also won at this distance at the 2005 World Championships in Helsinki.

This was just the third time in 15 head-to-head 400 meter races that Merritt was able to upset Wariner. The 22-year-old last defeated Wariner in Berlin on June 1.

"When I compete, he's (Wariner) not in my pocket, so I'm not worried about beating him," said Merritt. "My focus was to cross the line first. I had to prove to myself that I could make this team and compete in Beijing and that's what I did."

Despite the disappointment of the second-place finish, Wariner met his main goal -- to qualify for Beijing.

"This motivates me and I know I need to train harder," said Wariner. "I got to 200 meters and let (Merritt) get me in the end. I made a move at 150 meters and I forced it instead of using my kick at the end. I didn't execute right. I think I'm still the favorite (at the Olympics). I've been there before and I know what it takes to win."

Finishing third in the 400 with a time of 44.61 was David Neville. The former Indiana Hoosier will also be headed to Beijing for his first-ever Olympic Games.

In the women's 400 meters, it was Sanya Richards coming in first place and earning a trip to the Summer Games. Richards won the women's 400 meters with a time of 49.89 seconds to qualify for her second Olympics. The 23-year-old finished fifth in the 400 in Athens, but was also a member of the gold-medal winning 4x400m relay team at the 2004 Olympics.

"I've been thinking about Beijing all year, but I knew this was going to be the most important step to get there," said Richards. "I tried to contain all the nerves and the anxiety and execute a perfect race and I almost did."

Joining Richards in Beijing will be Mary Wineberg and Dee Dee Trotter, who finished second and third, respectively, in the 400. Wineberg ran the event in 50.85 seconds, while Trotter came in a close third with a time of 50.88. Trotter, a member of the gold-medal winning women's 4x400m team in Athens, is headed to her second Olympics, while the 28-year-old Wineberg will make her Olympic debut later this summer.

The finals of the women's long jump competition also took place on Thursday and Brittney Reese won the event with a best jump of 6.95 meters (22-09.75 feet). Reese, the runner-up at the 2007 USA Outdoor Championships, turned in the best leap of the night on her final jump. This will be the first Olympics for Reese, who won the 2007 NCAA Outdoor championships in the long jump for Mississippi and as a result was named the women's field athlete of the year in the Southeastern Conference.

"At first it was kind of rough. The wind was swirling and I couldn't get my steps right," Reese said. "I kept getting behind so we kept moving it up, so on my last jump we just said, 'Let's go for it.' I went for it and we got a good jump in."

Grace Upshaw, three-time U.S. Outdoor champion in the long jump and a 2004 Olympian, also punched her ticket to Beijing with a best jump of 6.88 meters (22-07.00). Funmi Jimoh, an alumna of Rice, qualified for her first Olympic Games with a leap of 6.72 meters (22-00.75).

An American record fell in the women's 3,000-meter steeplechase as Anna Willard won the final with a time of 9:27.59 to qualify for the Olympics. Lindsey Anderson and Jennifer Barringer also made it to Beijing by finishing second and third. Anderson came in at 9:30.75, while Barringer finished third with a time of 9:33.11.

Friday's action from the campus of the University of Oregon includes the finals in the men's 10,000 meters, women's 5,000 meters, men's hammer throw and the women's high jump.

The U.S. Olympic Track & Field Trials are back at Hayward Field for the first time since 1980. The historic venue also hosted the Track & Field Trials in 1972 and '76 and the USA Outdoor Track & Field Championships were staged here in both 1999 and 2001.

Hayward Field is also the annual setting for the Prefontaine Classic, the most prestigious invitational track meet in the U.S.