Bolt dominates London at 100m

In the 100m at the AVIVA Grand Prix Usain Bolt threw himself at the track yet again to record a solid 9.91. And yet again Bold ran out into the wet and miserable European weather that's followed him onto track after track for weeks now.

Getting his start and first 50m as he wanted he admitted :

"I am ready for anything that comes my way."

Humbly he added that he is neither unbeatable or invincible in a qualified way:

"Other people will have a good day ahen I don't, but until then I'll keep winning."

That rather spells out the facts.

In order to beat Usain Bolt over 100m or 200m this year Tyson Gay will have to have a "good day" and Bolt will have to experience a "bad" one. Even if that happens; there is still no certainty the American can defeat the Jamaican in Berlin; over any distance.

The 100m is over in a flash though and a stumble or mis-step at the start can be the difference between gold and any other colour. As for the 200m; it seems Bolt is quietly confident of his condition over that distance as he's not been bothering to race himself into shape over it preferring to run "stress testing" over 100m and getting his first 50m nailed; something that has real benefit for the 200m as well.

Crystal Palace 100m start list

Personal Best 1st Seasons Best 2nd

1 Leevan YEARWOOD GBR 10.22 10.26

2 Aaron ARMSTRONG TRI 10.03 10.03

3 Ivory WILLIAMS USA 9.93 9.93

4 Asafa POWELL JAM 9.72 9.98

5 Yohan BLAKE JAM 9.93 9.93

6 Travis PADGETT USA 9.89 10.00

7 James ELLINGTON GBR 10.27 10.27

8 Mark LEWIS-FRANCIS GBR 10.04 10.37



18:27 - 100 METRES - Men - Heats - Heat 2 START LIST
First 3 of each heat (Q) plus the 2 fastest times (q) qualified

Personal Best 1st Seasons Best 2nd

1 Harry AIKINES ARYEETEY GBR 10.10 10.15

2 Rae EDWARDS USA 10.02 10.02

3 Daniel BAILEY ANT 9.91 9.91

4 Usain BOLT JAM 9.69 9.79

5 Simeon WILLIAMSON GBR 10.03 10.05

6 Mark JELKS USA 9.99 10.04

7 Tyrone EDGAR GBR 10.06 10.09

8 Craig PICKERING GBR 10.14 10.23

Friday "no-show" or just "no showdown"?

On Friday at Crystal Palace in London Usain Bolt goes for another 100m outing saying "I'm not running scared. I'm not scared of anyone - I've never backed down from any challenge"

That has to be a direct barb to Tyson Gay who is expected to take to the track in the 200m and has "ducked" Bolt thus far in the run-up to Berlin.

Bolt with a fast 9.79 100m last Friday in Paris would not seem to need yet another 100m race (unless he wants to set a world record in London) however Tyson Gay still has the seasons best over 100m; just.

As for 200m; the 19.95 Bolt did recently that says enough over that distance for now.

The psychological pressure is hard on Gay at both 100m and 200m as Bolt just said Glen Mills "predicted" he can run 9.54; adding: "If the coach says so, he's always right,"

Bolt is certainly racing himself into great shape but a fast 200m by Gay on top of his good 100m would shake things up a bit.

Against that is the latest new from Mark Wetmore of the Gay camp that he will race 200m though is repeatedly suffering groin pain after his races.

The best in the world are talking expectations up in the case of Bolt and down in the case of Gay.

Bolt fine-tunes in Paris but US$ 1 million of gold will not be his

Right now Tyson Gay still owns the seasons two best 100m times and the #1 was 9.77 into a headwind in Rome: but they're only just the best!

Usain Bolt with an aim to peak in Berlin hit the track at Paris Golden League meet. He was at what he said "pre-meet" is 85 per cent fitness and he said himself "I never run for laughs".

His disarming approach must have meant that if conditions were perfect one of the fastest times ever over 100m could have been run by Bolt.

As it turned out running on an evening with rain and wind (yet again) a 9.79 it was.

That's vs. his 9.86 best earlier this season; from a poor start and only 0.02 seconds off Gays best so far; even though Bolt only got into his running after 50mtrs. The improvements are coming as planned by Bolt who is obviously racing his way into top form for Berlin. Some may argue Gay is ahead for once and for the first time in a long time perhaps he is.

With Gay complaining about his starts and Bolt not nailing his yet; both may still stumble out of the blocks when the world championships start; based on these times though the world record must be under threat every time they take to the track.

In "Top Shape" the 4th fastest ever 200m sees Bolt on fire in the rain - as Merrit and Powell make a splash.

Bolt runs 19.59 into a headwind in pouring rain in Lausanne Switzerland; just 100th off the time Tyson Gay set with a tailwind in NY on May 30.

400m specialist Lashawn Merrit in a tune-up came in second; Tyson Gay as expected was nowhere to be seen, ducking the rain and the competition. Perhaps he's in the sun somewhere working on his starts given his personal frustrations after the trials.

Next up Asafa Powell clocked a very decent 10.07, considering the adverse conditions, for a Jamaican clean sweep in the two glory sprints. The Americans seem to have a lot to do before the World Championships though Merrit is doing the right thing, getting out there and racing himself faster.