Beijing battle between Bolt and Powell for Olympic fastest human world title

The last 3 Olympic 100m finals have been well beyond excellent, seeing Donovan Bailey of Canada erase the image Ben Johnson left of the dominion in the minds of millions world wide winning gold at the Atlanta 1996 XXVI Centennial Summer Olympics did good for the soul. Watching the American records of 9.85s by Leroy Burrell at the Lausanne 1994 World Championships and 9.92 by Carl Lewis at the Seoul 1988 Summer Olympics fall was sad, but how glad when a Canadian pumped up the volume and picked up the medal, though I had the numbers mixed around for who would win the other ones. Another silver 9.89s time ran by Frank Fredericks of Namibia, almost exactly a sleeker, quicker and more aerodynamic version of his 1992 Barcelona Summer Olympics performance of 10.02s and 9.90s bronze by Ato Boldon of Trinidad and Tobago had did better than I though, as I felt Bailey would win the gold, but Briton Linford Christie being the gold medallist at the 1992 Barcelona Summer Olympics with 9.96s and 1993 Stuttgart World Championships with 9.87s, would dig for silver only to end up being disqualified this time for false starting out from the blocks as an oft user of performance enhancing drugs pseudoephedrine, nandrolone and anabolic steroid and disqualifier as such. With both of the Americans Dennis Mitchell and Michael Marsh coming in a bronze 3rd and 4th place, especially as Mitchell had finished with a bronze time of 10.04 at the 1992 Barcelona Summer Olympics, instead the legacies of Lewis and Burrell ended up in 4th and 5th at 9.99s and 10.00s respectfully.

Also I felt a fifth place for Canadian Bruny Surin of Canada with 10.13s, a sixth place for American Jon Drummond with 10.16s in semis, a seventh place for Kim Collins of Saint Kitts and Nevis with 10.34s in semis and an eighth to Obadele Thompson of Barbados with 10.16s in semis. I distinctly remember giving out propers to Jan Torbjorn Eriksson of Sweden, who although he did not even qualify with his preliminary 10.49s time, ran like a dickens right down his powerlane home to almost place in his own heat for the short sprints and now he trains Scandinavian youth in athletics like Jenny Kallur of Sweden like a professional. Rounding out Atlanta, the Canadians also won gold in the 4X100m relay with an Olympic record time of 37.69s over the Americans Dream Team time of 38.05s, thanks to the blast off lead of Robert Esmie, second Glenroy Gilbert, third Bruny Surin then the fastest anchor Donovan Bailey and preliminary heat extra Carlton Chambers, which is almost identical to its 1995 Gothenburg at 38.31s and 1997 Athens at 37.86s World Championship Gold medallist teams. Other events in both games, the men I favoured at 200m American Michael Bates and Michael Johnson, 400m Americans Quincy Watts and Michael Johnson, 800m Norwegian Vebjorn Rodal and Danish Wilson Kipketer, 110m Canadian Mark Mckoy and Briton Colin Jackson, 400m hurdles American Kevin Young and Swedish Sven Nylander, 4X100m relay Team Canada and 4X400m relay Team United States. And for women, in both games 100m American Gail Devers and Jamaican Merlene Ottey, 200m American Gwen Torrence and Jamaican Merlene Ottey, 400m Canadian Jillian Richardson and German Grit Breuer, 800m Dutch Ellen Van Langen and Russian Svetlana Masterkova, 100m hurdles American Gail Devers and Swedish Ludmila Engquist, 400m hurdles Swedish Frida Johansson and American Kim Batten, 4X100m relay United States and 4X400m relay Team Canada.

From Atlanta to Athens, we witnessed the Americans go from Dream Team to Drug Team, thanks in part to a cultural behaviour change through a smalltown business transformation from Millbrae Holistic Vitamins into corporate giant Bay Area Laboratory Cooperative and its founder and owner Victor Conte, making the next turn of a decade nay century nay millenium a more biological, kinesiological and physiological one.

Big Maurice Greene of the United States of America was as I thought in the gold at 9.87s, who had bested Baileys 9.91s time at the 1997 Athens World Championships with his 9.86s time, however I was very wrong in my belief Bailey bought the silver for Canada, as the ruptured Achilles tendon acted up throughout the season and then a bout with pneumonia during prelims, quarterfinals and finally the semifinals finished him off. Also I felt Ato Boldon of Trinidad and Tobago would bag the bronze and come in third, obviously did way better with his silver and second place finish at 9.99s time, instead it would be Obadele Thompson of Barbados taking bronze with his 10.04s time, someone whom I had picked lower than Surin who I thought had fourth all but wrapped up. Once again I distinctly remember giving out propers to Nicolas Macrozonaris of Canada, who seemed to do better than Eriksson in Atlanta, but still did not even qualify with his preliminary 10.45s time even though he too ran his race in his own heat to almost place. Finishing out Athens was in my own mind, a sixth place for American Jon Drummond who finished with a 10.09s in 5th, a seventh place for Briton Dwain Chambers who finished with a 10.08s in 4th and an eighth place for Kim Collins of Saint Kitts and Nevis with 10.17s in 7th.

At these Beijing 2008 XXIX Olympiad Mens 100m, we shall likely see a new batch Jamaican Asafa Powell for gold, Usain Bolt of Jamaica for silver and Walter Dix of the United States of America for the bronze. American Tyson Gay seems ready for 4th place, Michael Frater of Jamaica for 5th place, Kim Collins of Saint Kitts and Nevis for 6th, Richard Thompson of Trinidad and Tobago for 7th and Pierre Browne of Canada, not Anson Henry as most had been thinking, in 8th place for good measure. To predictate which men will be winners of gold, for the 200m Walter Dix of the United States of America, for the 400m Jeremy Wariner of the United States of America, for the 800m Gary Reed of Canada, in the 110m hurdles Liu Xiang of China, in the 400m hurdles Angelo Taylor of the United States of America, in the 4X100m relay Team Jamaica and in the 4X400m relay Team United States. Finally, I believe for the women who will win gold, for the 100m Kerron Stewart of Jamaica, for the 200m Allyson Felix of the United States of America, for the 400m Sanya Richards of the United States of America, for the 800m Pamela Jelimo of Kenya, in the 100m hurdles Susanna Kallur of Sweden, in the 400m hurdles Queen Harrison of the United States of America, in the 4X100m relay Team United States and in the 4X400m relay Team United States.