DAEGU — Usain Bolt kicked off his World Championships like only the golden Jamaican can – with a blazing start that blew all opposition away halfway through his 100 metres heat yesterday.
Bolt coasted for the second half of the race for the day’s best time of 10.10 seconds, a ho-hum mark by his standards. But because of the way he shot out of the blocks, the result on the scoreboard looked more like two perfect 10s for style.
“The key thing was my start,” Bolt said. “I’ve been lacking that, but got it perfectly straight. That’s why it looked so easy.”
Bolt is expected to claim three golds by the time the championships end next weekend. And he proved his form is matching his unsurpassed braggadocio.
Two hours before his heat, Bolt was already dancing and prancing in the warm-up area. At the track, he was quickly showing off his Jamaican shirt designed by the daughter of reggae great Bob Marley. He slicked his hair and goatee toward a crowd that was halved after 53 000 fans celebrated the opening ceremony.
Those who stayed saw an impressive Bolt for 50 metres, showing off the power that earned him three gold medals at both the 2008 Beijing Olympics and the 2009 World Championships in Berlin.
Now he is heading for the tough part – the semi-finals and likely final today.
He still has the 200 and 4×100 relays coming up this week. However, his path to the 100 final is eased because challengers Asafa Powell and Tyson Gay are injured and not competing.
“My focus is to go out there and win, execute and show the world I’m still the best,” Bolt said. “That’s what I’m going to do.”
Americans Allyson Felix and Sanya Richards-Ross easily went into today’s semi-finals – Felix with effortless grace and Richards-Ross putting in her big push in the final stretch to beat Jamaican rival Shericka Williams. (AP)
