Usain Bolt Runs 9.77 In Ostrava
Bolt Equals His Fourth Fastest 100m Time In Any Condition
Jun 22, 2009
The Jamaican hero from the Beijing Games last summer shook off a sluggish start to demolish a 100-metres field to win in 9.77 seconds, aided by a following wind reading of 2.1 metres per second.
Second Worse Start Ever
Finding himself out of the top positions half way through the race, Bolt turned on the pressure and used his long strides to not only close to gap, but to remarkably separate himself from the field in the close.
"That's probably the second worst start I ever had," Bolt, who is not known for being the best of starters, said of his reaction time.
"I saw that I was behind and I really wanted to run a fast time here, so I really pushed hard to get back. That’s why you saw me really dipping at the line.
"I'm always good in the second half and that was when I got back into the race," he added.
Bolt's performance equalled his fourth best ever timing in any conditions, as he left a wide margin between himself and Great Britain's Craig Pickering, who finished second in a distant 10.08seconds and France's Ronald Pognon, the third place finisher with 10.15.
The 22-year-old who watched arch rival Tyson Gay clocked a stunning 19.58secs in the 200m at the Reebok Grand in New York, last month said he wanted to put something down to see where he was with his training.
Bolt was hoping to leave everything on the track at the Toronto Festival on June 11, but found the going rough and struggled to find motivation in the cold and the rain.
Admits To A Bad Day In Toronto
He, however, did enough to outshine a solid field and win the race easily in 10.00secs, but admits afterwards that he had a very bad day.
"I think I could have done a little bit better," Bolt recalled. "But it's alright. I guess I will put this down as a bad day for me."
And it was indeed, as the man nicknamed "The Lightening Bolt" returned six days later with one of the best performances in history.
After getting back into his running form, Bolt’s next assignment is to book his place on the Jamaican national team for the upcoming IAAF World Championships in Athletics in Berlin later this summer.
He will clash with his good friend Asafa Powell, the former world 100m record holder, Michael Frater, the 2005 world championships silver medalist and the teenage sensation Yohan Blake, in his quest to defend his sprint double at the national stadium.
This time last year, Bolt had already lowered Powell's world record to 9.72secs and his Wednesday's flier in National Stadium in Ostrava, will have his challengers shaking in their spikes again.
"I’m really looking forward to the (Jamaican) trials," Bolt, a man clearly running into form said.
Admits To Being One Of The Best, But Not The Best Ever
Bolt’s phenomenal performance in Beijing where he won three gold medals from three races made many saluting him as perhaps the best ever sprinter.
However, the laid-back Jamaican sprint ace said he is not there yet, but admits that he is working towards being a legend in the athletics.
"I am not (the best ever) I am only one of them. Therefore I am still working on myself or more the "project BOLT" to get there to become the best athlete and legend ever," he said with that determined nonsense look on his face.
Bolt said he wants to dominate his events - the 100m and 200m - just as the great Americans Michael Johnson (200m and 400m) and Carl Lewis (100m and 200m) did.
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