In a surprising finish to many, defending World Record holder, and Olympic champion Usain Bolt of Jamaica was upset by the United States Tyson Gay, who beat the “Fastest Man in the World” by an astonishing .13 seconds to win the 100 Meter heat posting a 9.84 time to Bolt’s disappointing 9.97.
Bolt first rocked the world at the 2008 Beijing Olympics when he won Gold in both the 100 Meter and 200 Meter races, becoming the first man since Carl Lewis did it in 1984 to sweep both Olympic sprints.
He electrified the world even further when he proceeded to set a new world record last August at the world championships in Berlin with a nearly unbelievable time of 9.58 in the 100 Meter race.
Coming into these events, most thought he would easily win out over Gay, as he’d ran faster even this year than Gay’s winning time in this meet, posting a 9.82 time just a month ago in Lausanne, Switzerland.
As the race approached, the fans became silent, and their anxiety likely increased when there were two false starts prior to the race finally being run.
Once the race did begin, for the first stretch of the race, it seemed like it would end like all the others Bolt had taken part in, with him being the victor. Usain and Gay raced side by side in lanes four and five, and there was nothing immediately to indicate this would be an upset.
However, as the race progressed Gay seemed far more comfortable in his strides and in total control of the race, while Bolt seemed unusually uncomfortable.
Whatever the cause of this, the American pulled away from the Jamaican as Usain struggled to keep up.
“I think it showed that I wasn’t in the best of shape,” Bolt said after the race about his struggles. “I’m not unbeatable. I can be beaten and it showed today.”
Tyson Gay wasn’t crowing about the win afterward, though, recognizing Bolt’s physical struggles aided him in the win when he said, “I’m really happy with the win, even though Usain Bolt isn’t in the best shape It was very important to beat someone like that for the fans and the sport.”
It was even more of an upset to some because of the fact Gay had been struggling a bit of late. However, he has apparently now put himself right into the mix for the 2012 Olympic Games, and will easily be seen as one of the favorites, along with Bolt, to medal. Hopefully he can do well in those games and possibly beat Bolt again and take gold.
Bolt isn’t conceding that possibility, though, or losing to Gay or anyone else in the future.
“This is my easy season,” he added. “If you don’t beat me this season it’s not going to happen next season because next year is a championship year.”
Yet, with this win, despite Bolt’s apparent physical struggles, Gay has once again showed he’s one of the world’s top runners, and has shown he isn’t done yet.
In fact, he’s just getting started.
Race Notes: Richard Thompson of Trinidad placed third, posting a 10.10 time in the meet. Asafa Powell of Jamaica was forced to drop out Wednesday due to a back injury. This denied fans the chance to see the world’s “three” fastest men face each other.
