There’s no doubt now – Usain Bolt might still be the favorite to win gold medals in 100 and 200 meters in London, but Yohan Blake seems ready to usurp the kind of the sprints and world record holder in both events, after beating Bolt at the 200 meters race in the Jamaican trials for the 2012 London Summer Olympics.
Blake, well, has arrived. He put himself on the map a year ago in Daegu, winning the gold in the 100 meters race after Usain Bolt disqualified for a false start, suffering from the change of rules that don’t allow more than one false start. The field was wide open and Blake took over it, but no one thought that he’s better than Bolt. A 9.75 in the Jamaican trials three days ago changed everyone’s mind.
He didn’t even race in the 200 meters a year ago, leaving Bolt to run a brilliant 19.40 and win his only individual gold of the championships. But Blake has already run a 19.26, and in an event that is thought to be an even more dominant arena for Bolt, Blake showed that he’s right up there with the current king of athletics, maybe even better.
His 19.80 time wasn’t exactly a record breaker or even close, but it was how he did it, coming from behind in the straight, overtaking Bolt’s position at the front in the final couple of seconds. Bolt (19.83) looked to his left helplessly, before running to congratulate his training partner. If there was jealousy, envy or worst on the track, no one saw it. Blake tried to quiet the crowd down, showing there’s still a lot of work to be done. It didn’t really help.
The Jamaicans have had only four years, barely, of the current king of the track, who simply shredded the record books in a couple of years, on the biggest stages possible. First the 100 & 200 in Beijing, with his 200 record especially incredible. A year later in the world championships, Bolt simply beat his own amazing feats.
Now Jamaica look to have a sure 1-2, Gold-Silver combo in both events. At the moment, as incredible as it is to even consider it, Usain Bolt might be the underdog and the second fastest man entering both events, as Yohan Blake just looks more prepared for the Olympic Games.