Track sprinter Miles Outerbridge was delighted to finish third in the 100 metres at the prestigious Brooks PR Invitational in Seattle on Sunday.

Outerbridge, one of three Montverde Academy students to compete at the elite high school and middle school athletics showcase, clocked 10.69sec to take the bronze medal.

The race was won by American Benjamin Harris in 10.58, with compatriot Christian Witcher second by one-thousandth of a second.

“The experience was really great,” Outerbridge told The Royal Gazette.

“Being invited to the event had taken me back due to how prestigious it is. Being able to race against the top athletes in the US really made me feel proud of how far I’ve come and my running abilities.”

Considering that he went into the meet with the fastest time of 10.21, achieved when he won gold at the Carifta Games in Grenada, the teenager had high expectations.

“I felt a little bit disappointed with my third-place finish,” the 18-year-old said.

“My aim was to be higher on the podium but against such a quality field I can’t be too upset.”

Outerbridge, who started off his track season in spectacular fashion at the Virginia Showcase in January, rated the event as one of the top meets he has been to this year.

“This was probably the second or third-best meet I have attended all year,” he said.

“Even though I did not run the result I wanted, it was very well organised and what Brooks had provided to me was above and beyond.”

The race has helped fine-tune the youngster for the New Balance Nationals Outdoor, which takes place at the University of Pennsylvania next week.

“Before Brooks I had not raced for over a month, so it really helped me get back into that competition groove,” he said.

Outerbridge, who is heading off to University of Houston in August, where he will be under the guidance of the legendary Carl Lewis, is home in Bermuda for a few days before he heads to Florida to join up with his Montverde team-mates for the trip to Pennsylvania.

After graduating from Montverde last month, he has been back on island to train with national coach DeVon Bean and Norre Robinson.

Bean is taking Outerbridge, Robinson, Denver Tucker and Cameron Basden as a Bermuda team to compete in the relays at the Barbados Grand Prix, which is scheduled for July 4. Outerbridge is also preparing for his maiden appearance at the World Athletics Under-20 Championships in Eugene, Oregon, from August 5 to 9.

“To prepare for all of the next events I plan to keep consistent with my training and keep working with the support systems I have,” he said.

“Coming back home has allowed me to train with a more male-heavy group, which I hope will help me keep improving.

“I’m not working with Carl Lewis yet because I’m still in that transition period from my high school to college, so I’m still getting workouts in my coaching from my high school track coach, Keston Bledman.

“I’ll be at University of Houston on August 24 and that’s when I’ll be doing the full transfer over to his programme from my high school.

“I’m going to go back to Florida for a couple of days and I’ll be training with my high school for a little bit and then travel with the team up to Philadelphia from Orlando.”

When Outerbridge won two medals at the Carifta Games in Grenada, his parents were not there to witness his exploits in person, but his mother did attend the meet in Seattle last weekend.

“Having my mum come with me and support me felt really great,” he added. “She was finally able to see the extent of my progression in person.”