Bolt says he was not thinking of a world record
Published:Monday | August 17, 2009 | 11:04 AM
Beijing Olympic triple gold medallist Usain Bolt says he was not thinking about a world record when he lined up for the men’s 100-metre final on yesterday’s second day of the World Championship in Berlin, Germany.
Bolt says he went into the final thinking about a gold medal.
The Jamaican delivered one of the most astonishing performances ever seen in athletics to clock a world record 9.58 seconds.
He took a massive 0.11 seconds off the previous record mark of 9.69 he achieved in a gold medal performance in the Beijing Olympics one year ago.
Bolt left defending champion Tyson Gay a distant second even though the American’s time of 9.71 was the third fastest ever. Asafa Powell of Jamaica was third in a season-best 9.84.
Powell says the record run by Bolt stunned him. However, he says it was great to be part of the race.
Meanwhile, the second round of the women’s 100 metres saw wins for Jamaicans Kerron Stewart and Veronica Campbell-Brown, the defending champion.
Stewart was the quickest of the round at 10.92 and Campbell-Brown won in 10.99.
The Jamaican pair of Novlene Williams-Mills and Shericka Williams posted semi-final wins in the women’s 400 metres.
In the men’s equivalent, Jamaican Isa Phillips, one of the gold medal favourites, crashed out, while his countryman Danny McFarlane advanced to the final.