Gay and Powell left to ponder what to do about the Bolt factor
They arrived at the Olympics with no-one being able to split them but
Usain Bolt’s astonishing performance in the 100 metres leaves Asafa
Powell and Tyson Gay with a lot of sorting out to do if they are to
redress the balance between them.
Bolt has emerged from the event as the most dominant force since
Maurice Greene when the ‘Kansas Comet’ won the world title in 1997, went
on to break the world record and climaxed with the Olympic crown in
Sydney in 2000.
Gay and Powell must be scratching their heads as to what to do to hit
back at Bolt.
Both had far more experience at major championships than the
21-year-old which ultimately was the one chink in his armour that they
could hold on to hoping he would crack.
Powell is the one who will have to do the most soul searching for
once again he failed to rise to the big occasion with just a
Commonwealth Games title to his name and that was one he nearly let slip
as well in 2006.
There is no doubt of his talent - he is the only athlete to have run
under 9.80sec five times - but his body language and demeanour suggests
that he will always struggle to challenge Bolt for major honours.
“He is the best ever sprinter and I’ve said that before,” said the
25-year-old, who had been seen at one point as being the man most likely
to end Jamaica’s record of never winning gold in the Olympic 100m.
“He has run 9.69 and got the gold so he is definitely the greatest.
It was a spectacular performance and he was definitely the best here.
He could have run faster if he had run straight through the line.”
Powell insisted that his mind was fine it was just his legs that
wouldn’t operate as he wanted them to but to many the excuse had been
used before by the gentle giant from Jamaica. Gay at least can say he
wasn’t beaten by Bolt.
The 26-year-old took a gamble by not racing in over a month as he
nursed back to health his injured hamstring and it was not one that paid
off as his semi-final exit testified.
Whether a fully fit Gay would have pushed Bolt all the way on the
night is debateable but the reigning world champion remains the most
likely challenger to the Jamaican’s supremacy and has a 9.67 run to his
credit, admittedly wind aided.
Bolt as much as admitted that there was unfinished business to be
dealt with having not had Gay in the final.
BEIJING, Sunday, AFP |
