It is eight years since Bolt exploded into the world’s consciousness with his devastating success at the Beijing Games, but as he prepares to write his latest chapter of history, the Jamaican has bolder ambitions than merely securing three more golds. This, though, will be some compensation.
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This was his first and final outing over 200m before attempting to retain his three gold medals in Rio.
Panama’s Alonso Edward ran a season’s best of 20.04sec while Britain’s Adam Gemili produced a 2016 best of 20.07sec.
“For me I felt it was a joke and a disrespect at the fact that they think I would back out of a trials – me Usain Bolt who has proven himself time and time again that I am the greatest”, Bolt told The Gleaner.
Like Bolt, she has taken the 100-meter title at each of the past two Olympics.
For once, though, Bolt was not the best athletics performance of the night.
Brushing aside any concerns about the hamstring injury which forced him to withdraw from his country’s Olympic trials earlier this month, the Jamaican sprint king ran a solid time of 19.89sec in his first competitive 200m of this season in London on Friday.
But Laura Muir produced the British performance of the evening by breaking Kelly Holmes’ national record to win the 1500m easily. “I came out here with vengeance to show what I could do”.
Still, Bolt says he’s focused on improving his execution as he continues his preparation for the Games. “I just ran my best and look what happened”.
The newly-laid track in Stratford is clearly very quick.
“I’m just blessed to go out there and give it all I have”.
The quartet of Asha Philip, Desiree Henry, Dina Asher-Smith and Daryll Neita claimed a dominant victory in 41.81, taking 0.29 off the previous British record, set past year.
Harrison, however, will be watching the Games on TV having finished sixth in the 100m hurdles at the USA trials after breaking the national record in May. She was less impressive in the final, clipping a hurdle hard as she finished in 13.04 but this will still count as a good night’s work.
Ennis-Hill’s heptathlon rival, Katarina Johnson-Thompson, also showed that her form was improving nicely as she cleared an outdoor personal best of 1.95m in the high jump to finish third behind Ruth Beitia from Spain.
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Christine Ohuruogu justified her inclusion in the British team for the individual 400m in Rio by running the fastest time in the country this year at 51.05. To get back up after you ran slow, you know, you’ve got to do that and I did that I’m just really happy. “I concentrated a bit too much maybe, and mucked it up really”.
