Comments on: EXPRESS DELIVERY

By: Lausanne

Lausanne — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 12:20:21 +0000

Lausanne has earned the event, I think.

By: zeus of the us

zeus of the us — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 12:09:14 +0000

wow, these bolt jock riders never cease to amaze me.Bolts times are gonna plummet,but gay will only run 19.45.What i’m wondering is how you precogs figure gay can only run 19.45 after he ran 19.58 in his first outing,but bolt will run 19.10 or faster.And you base this on what.When I compare the times these two have run so far they seem to match up well.Both ran 9.7 windy.Both ran 19.5 in the duece(bolt jogging the last 180 of course).But according to the bolt faithful, gay has reached his limit (in his first race no less) but bolt will continue to improve.I guess Gay doesn’t train to peak at worlds.Thats a strategy reserved for bolt.No way gay can break a record or improve his 19.5 .Everyone knows the limits of his abilities,combined with his work ethic.WOW.Please someone send me that memo cause I didn’t get it.

By: Prometheus

Prometheus — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 08:08:07 +0000

The times suggested for Bolt later in the season is wishful thinking as there are so many things that can go wrong. The weather conditions in Berlin could turn sour what with wind and/or rain, and there is the ever present threat of injury. Bolt is not immune to the latter, since that sort of thing eventually happens to virtually all fast sprinters. Then there is the ugly thought that he might be using a chemical assist. If that happens, it will make the 1988 Olympic 100m scandal look pale indeed. I am reminded of the saying, “If something seems to be too good to be true, then it usually is too good to be true”. Bolt does these fast times but are they the result of just hard training and talent? I remember reading some years back that a Swedish coach stated that it was physically impossible for a man to run 100m under 10.00 seconds without “help”. Perhaps that is a bit extreme, but still it makes one wonder. It will be interesting to see how this plays out in Berlin.

By: Pat

Pat — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 07:28:30 +0000

thanks, Charley, for the correction on elevation, I should have checked, instead of relying on my own impression of the vertiginous stroll up the hill towards the ‘Olympique’

the move from lakeside was in 1987, when 19000 people crammed into Stade Olympique, the maximum now is 14000, which was the crowd on Tuesday

Incidentally, I should have reminded readers that Gay is the reigning world 100/200 champ, having beaten Bolt into second place in the latter, in Osaka

and Alfons Juck reports that Bolt’s reaction time in Lausanne was very slow, even by his standards, 0.228sec

By: David Cocksedge

David Cocksedge — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 05:12:38 +0000

I am sure that Tyson Gay got the message. Many Americans really think that he can challenge Bolt over 200 metres in Berlin - yes, maybe for the first 110 metres; then the Lightening Bolt will go into overdrive, and the race for the gold medal will be over. Gay can run in the region of 19.45 and still lose by 4 metres.
Bolt also has some unfinished business over 100 metres. In Bejing he ran 9.69 in spite of shutting down over the last 15 metres - and he made world class sprinters behind him look like untrained schoolboys.
We have yet to see what this amazing man can really do - and when he moves seriously up to one lap of the track, it will certainly be GOODBYE MJ’s 43.18 from Seville in 1999.
I agree that the greatest 100 metres ever raced (in terms of media hype and expectation) was the 1988 Olympic final in Seoul. Ben Johnson’s classic finish - easing off as he threw his right arm aloft, index finger extended and looking back to his left at a dismayed Carl Lewis was an unforgettable moment for me. Of course BJ went from ‘hero to zero in 9.79 seconds’ but so what? It was still an awesome thing to witness. ‘Big Bad Ben’ was certainly not the only doper in the sport yet was treated like a child molester in some quarters perhaps because he was eventually honest enough to own up to his extensive drug use at the Dubin Inquiry that followed.
I resent the hypocrisy of a society that demands (and awards) great performances only to reel back in self-righteous horror on discovering that athletes are doping in order to reach the very high standards required. Without chemical aid it is simply impossible to put in the countless hours of training and then recover enough to compete at a very high level. Extensive training is still required as I am sure that Rashid Ramzi will tell you (!) There are no ‘magic pills’ that will turn a slob into a world class athlete overnight, yet some ignorant people still believe that to be the case.
Those who really want to ‘clean up’ modern professional sport should consider reverting back to amateur athletics. Remove the incentive (large cash payments for appearance and performance) and you will largely eliminate drug abuse. I know of course that this is totally unrealistic and will never happen. Market forces rule and athletes who can fill a stadium on their name alone will always command enormous appearance fees.

By: JP

JP — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 00:07:01 +0000

19.27?! I see no reason to doubt that he could do that! Imagine someone as incredible as Tyson Gay running a 19.4 and getting SECOND! Incredible!

By: B Smith

B Smith — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 22:42:18 +0000

I predict a 19.10 or 18.99 as long as he is pushed by Gay who will probably run a 19.4

By: Charley

Charley — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 22:03:38 +0000

Pat, the elevation difference between the two stadia is only 223 m, not 500 m.

Olympique: 599 m per Google Earth
Coubertin: 376 m
Lake Geneva: 371 m

Can you tell us what year the athletics meetings were moved up the hill to the Stade Olympique?

By: James O'Brien

James O'Brien — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 20:49:36 +0000

I predict - Bolt 19.27 in Berlin. Any takers?
JOB