Usain Bolt produced his killer-instinct for vaporising rivals by regaining his world 100 metres crown in the Moscow rain yesterday, restoring some credibility to a sport tarnished by a plethora of doping scandals.
His victory in 9.77 seconds, holding off American Justin Gatlin (9.85) and fellow Jamaican Nesta Carter (9.95), banished memories of his Daegu false-start and disqualification when he was forced to slope away from a 2011 final he did not get to contest.
Two years on it was less Bolt the showman of Olympic and world record acclaim, more Bolt the serious.
“I wanted to do a better time but was not able to because of the weather,” Bolt said. “Not singing in the rain, but running in the rain tonight.
“I’m feeling good, just a little bit tired. I need some rest.”
With his world record of 9.58 set at the 2009 Berlin world championships seemingly now a distant memory, Bolt still hammered home the message with each muscle-extending stride that he remains sprint king of the track at 27.
“It was not revenge for Daegu, I just came here to win this title,” Bolt added. “I cannot forget Daegu because all you guys keep reminding me on my false start.”
Bolt has been far from his best this season – but his best on the night – the second fastest time of the year after American Tyson Gay’s 9.75 in June – was good enough.
Unlike his embarrassing Daegu downfall, Bolt this time made no mistake out of the blocks and although trailing Gatlin, directly to his left, at halfway, he surged to the front at 60metres.
Gatlin, former world and Olympic champion and twice banned for doping, stayed on his shoulder all the way to the line, followed by Carter and two more Jamaicans Kemar Bailey-Cole and Nickel Ashmeade.
“I feel good if I’d run a perfect race and got beaten I would have been concerned, but I didn’t run a perfect race,” Gatlin said.
“I got a little over-excited and didn’t execute the last 30 metres.”
America’s Olympic champion Brittney Reese maintained her firm grip on the women’s long jump when she won her third successive world outdoor title.
The 26-year-old posted a best jump of 7.01 metres to take gold, while Nigerian Blessing Okagbare won silver (6.99m) and Serbia’s Ivana Spanovic the bronze in a new national record of 6.82m.
Despite her dominance; Reese is a long way from threatening the world record of Galina Chistyakova of the then Soviet Union which stands at 7.52m and was set back in 1988.
American Ashton Eaton cemented his position as the world’s greatest athlete when he won the world decathlon title, completing a spectacular hat-trick having won Olympic gold and broken the world record last year.
Eaton led from the first event on Saturday morning when he laid down a marker with a 10.35-seconds 100 metres, completing the first day with the fastest 400m ever run in a decathlon world championships.
He poured on the pressure yesterday as a 5.20 metre pole vault and a brave 64.83m last-throw javelin opened a virtually unassailable lead and he made no mistake in the 1,500m finale to triumph with 8,809 points,
Germany’s Michael Schrader took silver with 8,670 while Canadian Damian Warner of Canada got bronze with 8,512.
Ethiopia’s Tirunesh Dibaba won a third world 10,000m title.
Dibaba clocked 30min 43.37sec, with Gladys Cherono of Kenya taking silver (30:45.17), and Ethiopia’s Belaynesh Oljira claiming bronze (30:46.98).
Croatia’s Sandra Perkovic won the women’s discus title.
Source:Agencies
