After a breathlessly tight finish in the 100m, Usain Bolt brushed everyone aside on the way to 200m gold at the World Athletics Championships. It was a run that re-affirmed (again!) the Jamaican’s greatness – but just how long can he go on for?
HOW IT HAPPENED
Considering the way the 100m final unfolded – Bolt edged to
victory, but many observers were left wondering if Justin Gatlin would
have triumphed had he kept his form together over the final 10 metres –
the 200m was billed as Gatlin’s great chance at revenge.
Bolt had looked more impressive in the 200m heats than he had
done over the preliminaries for the shorter distance, but also Gatlin
looked to have regrouped after his disappointment and seemed primed to
make amends. The stage was set for a dramatic showdown, even if Great
Britain’s Zharnel Hughes had managed to insert himself between the two
superstars for the final with an impressive semi-final run.
And what a final it was, conforming to what many hoped would
happen rather than what they feared would occur. Taking advantage of his
draw in lane 6, Bolt more than matched Gatlin (who had the advantage of
watching him from lane 4) out of the blocks and had a narrow advantage
over the American when the field came off the bend – an advantage he
only extended as he got into full stride down the home straight.
With 20 metres remaining and daylight between himself and the
field it was obvious the Jamaican had won, permitting him another
trademark early celebration – this time pointing to the name on his
chest as he burst through the line in a time of 19.55 seconds.
Jamaica's
Usain Bolt (C) celebrates with fans after winning the final of the
men's 200 metres athletics event at the 2015 IAAF World Championships at
the "Bird's Nest" National Stadium in Beijing on August 27, 2015 - AFP
HOW HE REACTED
The 29-year-old now has 10 world titles and six Olympic gold
medals to his name, and has not been beaten over 200m (“my favourite
[event] since I was 15”) in the finals of a major competition since the
2007 Worlds.
This latest sprint double seemed to carry some extra
satisfaction, considering many had feared Bolt’s chances going into the
meet. He said:
" "It means a lot to me. I'm happy to be a 10-time World Championships gold medallist, especially when people have been saying I would lose. I had the utmost confidence. As long as my coach is confident, I'm super confident.
Justin Gatlin said earlier in the week that he was going to bring out something special for the 200m I was like, ‘Yo, you don’t talk about my 200m like that’, so I had to prove to him that I am No. 1."
HOW HIS RIVALS AND PEERS REACTED
Justin Gatlin (who finished second): "I ran
as hard as I could. I held my form as long as I could. I am just tired
from running so many rounds. It's been such a long season. It feels good
to go against him. I'm just going to prepare myself for next year, for
the Olympics, and come out even stronger."
Anaso Jobodwana (who finished third): "[Bolt
and I] spoke in the call room and he said, ‘Are you ready for a 19
[second run]?’ and I said ‘Yeah’ and he said ‘Oh, you don’t sound too
confident’ and I said ‘No, no, no, I’m ready to run’ … When he saw me
[after] he was like, ‘Congrats … 19!’ Him talking to me also spurred me
on."
Zharnel Hughes (who finished fifth): "He is a legend. I even doubted him a bit but he knows what to do, so credit to him and congratulations to him."
Multiple world champion Michael Johnson: "He
is the best in the world and he does not have any rivals. We have to
give him a lot of credit for running in the 100m and 200m - this is the
most he has been challenged."
Usain
Bolt Jamaica (bottom) celebrates winning the race ahead of Justin
Gatlin of U.S. (R) who finished in second and Zharnel Hughes of Great
Britain in the men's 200 metres final during the 15th IAAF World
Championships at the National Stadium in Beijing - Reuters
Well, not quite … for about the first time in his career Bolt
was caught from behind during his post-race celebrations, as a cameraman
on a Segway suffered pretty much everyone’s worst nightmare…
Fortunately nobody was seriously injured. Afterwards Bolt was
light-hearted about the whole thing, saying at the post-race press
conference: "The rumour I'm starting right now is that Justin Gatlin
paid him off."
Gatlin, sitting next to his rival, replied: "I want my money back!"
WHAT NEXT FOR BOLT?
This is where things get interesting. Although the results of
the week have remained the same, it is clear that the winning is not
coming quite so easily for Bolt who, now 29, is entering the point where
historically sprinters have tended to drop off (Gatlin, 33, is one of a
handful of statistical anomalies).
The Jamaican’s public intention had previously been to compete
at next year’s Olympics and then retire following the 2017 World
Championships in London – but on Thursday evening he indicated the
second part of that equation may now be in doubt.
"I want to run but I think the sport is not as fun as it used to be - it's more taxing,” Bolt told the BBC. "I can't enjoy it as much as I want to because I have to sacrifice more.
"It is 50-50 [whether I run in London].”
OUR VIEW
In winning the 200m to complete yet another sprint double, Usain
Bolt confirmed his continued supremacy over the sprinting game and,
indeed, the wider athletics world. Always his favourite event, the
margin of victory in the 200m suggests that he will still be able to
dominate that particular discipline for a few more years to come.
It is in the 100m, however, where Bolt’s grip is starting to
look ever so slightly tenuous. Age may finally catch up with Gatlin
before he is able to finally surpass his rival, but last Saturday's
final underlined that the new generation are coming up fast - literally
and figuratively.
Trayvon Bromell and Andre De Grasse (both just 20) easily broke
10 seconds in claiming bronze medals in the final and figure to improve
their times exponentially over the coming seasons whereas Bolt, who
perhaps alluded to the issue in his training comments, needs to work
harder than ever simply to maintain his current speed. (It is worth
noting Bolt's 100m world record was set when he was 23 - and he was 21
before he went sub-10 seconds).
Usain Bolt avec Justin Gatlin et Zharnel Hughes lors du 200m des Mondiaux 2015 - AFP
Bolt can hardly retire from that event and keep going in others,
but he seems aware that it is the shorter distance that he will be
beaten over first (perhaps he even feared that moment was coming this
month), so maybe he is plotting his retirement based in part in a
pre-emptive move against any loss of his dominance.
He should have another year in him as the undisputed king –
offering him the chance to win a third successive sprint double at the
Olympic Games and reach another career peak. He is already a sporting
legend, but that would perhaps lift him above all equals – a record of
achievement almost impossible for anyone to ever match.
After that, why not go out on a high? What more will he have to prove?
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