A 200 metres race is a sprint running event. On an outdoor 400 m track, the race begins on the curve and ends on the home straight, so a combination of techniques are needed to successfully run the race. A slightly shorter race, called the ''stadion'' and run on a straight track, was the first recorded event at the Ancient Olympics. The 200 m places more emphasis on speed endurance than shorter sprint distances as athletes rely on different energy systems during the longer sprint.

In the United States and elsewhere, athletes previously ran the 220-yard dash (201.168 m) instead of the 200 m, though the distance is now obsolete. The standard adjustment used for the conversion from times recorded over 220 yards to 200 m times is to subtract 0.1 seconds, but other conversion methods exist.

The race attracts runners from other events wishing to double up and claim both titles. This feat has been achieved nine times at the Olympic Games, most recently by Jamaica's Usain Bolt in 2008. An Olympic double of 200 m and 400 m was first achieved by Valerie Brisco-Hooks in 1984, and later by Michael Johnson from the United States and Marie-José Pérec of France both in 1996.

The men's world record holder is Usain Bolt, who ran 19.19 s at the 2009 World Championships. The women's world record holder is Florence Griffith-Joyner of the United States, who ran 21.34 s at the 1988 Summer Olympics. The reigning Olympic champions are Usain Bolt and Veronica Campbell-Brown.

Because humans use the same muscles for both support and forward speed, the runners in the inside lanes are disadvantaged by centrifugal force during the bend phase. Consequently, the middle and outer lanes are preferred.

All-time fastest 200 m athletes

Only the ''fastest time for each athlete'' is listed.

Men

As of April 2010.

Usain BoltMichael Johnson (athlete)Tyson GayXavier CarterWallace SpearmonFrankie FredericksWalter DixPietro MenneaMichael Marsh (athlete)Carl LewisJoe DeLoach

Rank !! Res. !! Wind !! Athlete !! Nation !! Date !! Location
! 1.	19.19	−0.3	|		20 August 2009	Berlin
2.	19.32	+0.4	Michael Johnson ||		1 August 1996	Atlanta
3.	19.58	+1.3	|		30 May 2009	New York City
4.	19.63	+0.4	|		11 July 2006	Lausanne
5.	19.65	0.0	|		28 September 2006	Daegu
6.	19.68	+0.4	|		1 August 1996	Atlanta
7.	19.69	+0.9	|		26 May 2007	Gainesville, Florida>Gainesville
8.	19.72	+1.8	|		12 September 1979	Mexico City
9.	19.73	−0.2	Michael Marsh ||		5 August 1992	Barcelona
10.	rowspan="2"	19.75	+1.5	|		19 June 1983	Indianapolis
+1.8	|		28 September 1988	Seoul

Women

As of April 2010.

Florence Griffith-JoynerMarion JonesMerlene Ottey +0.7 Heike DrechslerGrace JacksonGwen TorrenceMarlies GöhrSilke Gladisch-MöllerVeronica Campbell-Brown

Rank !! Res. !! Wind !! Athlete !! Nation !! Date !! Location
! 1.	21.34	+1.3	|		29 September 1988	Seoul
2.	21.62	−0.6	|		11 September 1998	Johannesburg
3.	21.64	+0.8	|		13 September 1991	Brussels
4.	rowspan=2	21.71	|	Marita Koch		10 June 1979	Karl-Marx-Stadt
+1.2	|		29 June 1986	Jena
6.	rowspan=2	21.72	+1.3	|		29 September 1988	Seoul
−0.1	|		15 August 1992	Barcelona
8.	rowspan=3	21.74	+0.4	|		3 June 1984	Erfurt
+1.2	|		3 September 1987	Rome
−0.6	|		21 August 2008	Beijing

Olympic medalists

Men

{| |- |1900 Paris | | | |- |1904 St. Louis | | | |- |1908 London | | | |- |1912 Stockholm | | | |- |1920 Antwerp | | | |- |1924 Paris | | | |- |1928 Amsterdam | | | |- |1932 Los Angeles | | | |- |1936 Berlin | | | |- |1948 London | | | |- |1952 Helsinki | | | |- |1956 Melbourne | | | |- |1960 Rome | | | |- |1964 Tokyo | | | |- |1968 Mexico City | | | |- |1972 Munich | | | |- |1976 Montreal | | | |- |1980 Moscow | | | |- |1984 Los Angeles | | | |- |1988 Seoul | | | |- |1992 Barcelona | | | |- |1996 Atlanta | | | |- |2000 Sydney | | | |- |2004 Athens | | | |- |2008 Beijing | | | |}

Women

{| |- |1948 London | | | |- |1952 Helsinki | | | |- |1956 Melbourne | | | |- |1960 Rome | | | |- |1964 Tokyo | | | |- |1968 Mexico City | | | |- |1972 Munich | | | |- |1976 Montreal | | | |- |1980 Moscow | | | |- |1984 Los Angeles | | | |- |1988 Seoul | | | |- |1992 Barcelona | | | |- |1996 Atlanta | | | |- |2000 Sydney | vacant | | |- |2004 Athens | | | |- |2008 Beijing | | | |}

World Championship medalists

Men

{| |- | 1983 Helsinki || style="background:#F7F6A8;" | || style="background:#DCE5E5;" | || style="background:#FFDAB9;" | |- | 1987 Rome || style="background:#F7F6A8;" | || style="background:#DCE5E5;" | || style="background:#FFDAB9;" | |- | 1991 Tokyo || style="background:#F7F6A8;" | || style="background:#DCE5E5;" | || style="background:#FFDAB9;" | |- | 1993 Stuttgart || style="background:#F7F6A8;" | || style="background:#DCE5E5;" | || style="background:#FFDAB9;" | |- | 1995 Gothenburg || style="background:#F7F6A8;" | || style="background:#DCE5E5;" | || style="background:#FFDAB9;" | |- | 1997 Athens || style="background:#F7F6A8;" | || style="background:#DCE5E5;" | || style="background:#FFDAB9;" | |- | 1999 Seville || style="background:#F7F6A8;" | || style="background:#DCE5E5;" | || style="background:#FFDAB9;" | |- | 2001 Edmonton || style="background:#F7F6A8;" | || style="background:#DCE5E5;" | || style="background:#FFDAB9;" | |- | 2003 Paris || style="background:#F7F6A8;" | || style="background:#DCE5E5;" | || style="background:#FFDAB9;" | |- | 2005 Helsinki || style="background:#F7F6A8;" | || style="background:#DCE5E5;" | || style="background:#FFDAB9;" | |- | 2007 Osaka || style="background:#F7F6A8;" | || style="background:#DCE5E5;" | || style="background:#FFDAB9;" | |- | 2009 Berlin || style="background:#F7F6A8;" | || style="background:#DCE5E5;" | || style="background:#FFDAB9;" | |}

Women

{| |- |1983 Helsinki || style="background:#F7F6A8;" | ) || style="background:#DCE5E5;" | || style="background:#FFDAB9;" | |- |1987 Rome || style="background:#F7F6A8;" | || style="background:#DCE5E5;" | || style="background:#FFDAB9;" | |- |1991 Tokyo || style="background:#F7F6A8;" | || style="background:#DCE5E5;" | || style="background:#FFDAB9;" | |- |1993 Stuttgart || style="background:#F7F6A8;" | || style="background:#DCE5E5;" | || style="background:#FFDAB9;" | |- |1995 Gothenburg || style="background:#F7F6A8;" | || style="background:#DCE5E5;" | || style="background:#FFDAB9;" | |- |1997 Athens || style="background:#F7F6A8;" | || style="background:#DCE5E5;" | || style="background:#FFDAB9;" | |- |1999 Seville || style="background:#F7F6A8;" | || style="background:#DCE5E5;" | || style="background:#FFDAB9;" | |- |2001 Edmonton || style="background:#F7F6A8;" | || style="background:#DCE5E5;" | || style="background:#FFDAB9;" | |- |2003 Paris || style="background:#F7F6A8;" | || style="background:#DCE5E5;" | || style="background:#FFDAB9;" | |- | 2005 Helsinki || style="background:#F7F6A8;" | || style="background:#DCE5E5;" | || style="background:#FFDAB9;" | |- |2007 Osaka || style="background:#F7F6A8;" | || style="background:#DCE5E5;" | || style="background:#FFDAB9;" | |- |2009 Berlin || style="background:#F7F6A8;" | || style="background:#DCE5E5;" | || style="background:#FFDAB9;" | |}

Notes

References

External links

All time 200m men records

Category:Events in athletics (track and field) Category:Sprint running

ar:200 متر an:200 metros lisos ca:200 metres llisos cs:Běh na 200 m da:200-meter-løb de:200-Meter-Lauf et:200 meetri jooks es:200 metros (atletismo) eu:200 metroko lasterketa fr:200 mètres hr:Utrka na 200 m it:200 metri piani he:ריצת 200 מטר nl:200 meter (atletiek) ja:200メートル競走 no:200 meter pl:Bieg na 200 m pt:200 metros rasos ru:Бег на 200 метров sk:Beh na 200 metrov sr:Трка на 200 метара fi:200 metrin juoksu sv:200 meter tr:200 metre zh:200米赛跑

honorific-prefix	The Honourable, C.D.
name	Usain Bolt
nickname	Lightning Bolt
honorific-suffix	OJ
nationality	Jamaican
sport	Track and field
event	100m, 200m, 400m, 4×100m
club	Racers Track Club
birth date	August 21, 1986
birth place	Trelawny, Jamaica
residence	Kingston, Jamaica
height
weight
pb	100m: 9.58 s (WR, Berlin 2009) 150m: 14.35 s (WB, Manchester 2009) 200m: 19.19 s (WR, Berlin 2009) 400m: 45.28 s (Kingston 2007)
medaltemplates	}}

}} The Honourable Usain St. Leo Bolt, OJ, C.D. (; born 21 August 1986), is a Jamaican sprinter and a three-time World and Olympic gold medalist. He is the world record and Olympic record holder in the 100 metres, the 200 metres and (along with his teammates) the 4×100 metres relay. He is the reigning Olympic champion in these three events.

Bolt distinguished himself with a 200 m gold medal at the 2002 World Junior Championships, making him the competition's youngest-ever gold medalist. In 2004, at the CARIFTA Games, he became the first junior sprinter to run the 200 m in under 20 seconds with a time of 19.93 s, breaking the previous world junior record held by Roy Martin by two-tenths of a second. He turned professional in 2004, and although he competed at the 2004 Summer Olympics, he missed most of the next two seasons due to injuries. In 2007, he surpassed Don Quarrie's 200 m Jamaican record with a run of 19.75 s.

His 2008 season began with his first world record performance—a 100 m world record of 9.72 s—and culminated in world and Olympic records in both the 100 m and 200 m events at the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics. He ran 9.69 s for the 100 m and 19.30 s in the 200 m, and also set a 4×100 m relay record of 37.10 s with the Jamaican team. This made him the first man to win three sprinting events at a single Olympics since Carl Lewis in 1984, and the first man to set world records in all three at a single Olympics. The following year he further lowered his own 100 m and 200 m world records to 9.58 s and 19.19 s respectively at the 2009 World Championships. This made him the first man to hold both the 100 and 200 m world and Olympic titles at the same time.

His 2009 record breaking margin over 100 m is the highest since the start of digital time measurements. His achievements in sprinting have earned him the media nickname "Lightning Bolt", and awards including the ''IAAF World Athlete of the Year'', ''Track & Field Athlete of the Year'', and ''Laureus Sportsman of the Year''.

Early years

Bolt was born on 21 August 1986 in Sherwood Content, a small town in Trelawny, Jamaica, and grew up with his parents, Wellesley and Jennifer Bolt, his brother Sadeeki, and his sister Sherine. His parents ran the local grocery store in the rural area, and Bolt spent his time playing cricket and football in the street with his brother, later saying, "When I was young, I didn’t really think about anything other than sports".

As a child, he attended Waldensia Primary and All-age School, and it was here that he first began to show his sprinting potential, running in the annual national primary-schools' meeting for his parish. By the age of twelve, Bolt had become the school's fastest runner over the 100 metres distance.

Upon his entry to William Knibb Memorial High School, Bolt continued to focus on other sports, but his cricket coach noticed Bolt's speed on the pitch and urged him to try track and field events. Pablo McNeil, a former Olympic sprint athlete, and Dwayne Barrett coached Bolt, encouraging him to focus his energy on improving his athletic abilities. The school had a history of success in athletics with past students, including sprinter Michael Green. Bolt won his first annual high school championships medal in 2001, taking the silver medal in the 200 metres with a time of 22.04 seconds. McNeil soon became his primary coach, and the two enjoyed a positive partnership, although McNeil was occasionally frustrated by Bolt's lack of dedication to his training and his predisposition to practical jokes.

Early competitions

Performing for Jamaica in his first Caribbean regional event, Bolt clocked a personal best of 48.28 s in the 400 metres in the 2001 CARIFTA Games, winning a silver medal. The 200 m also yielded a silver as Bolt finished in 21.81 s.

He made his first appearance on the world stage at the 2001 IAAF World Youth Championships in Debrecen, Hungary. Running in the 200 m event, he failed to qualify for the finals, but he still set a new personal best of 21.73 s. Bolt still did not take athletics or himself too seriously, however, and he took his mischievousness to new heights by hiding in the back of a van when he was supposed to be preparing for the 200 m finals at the CARIFTA Trials. He was detained by the police for his practical joke, and there was an outcry from the local community, which blamed coach McNeil for the incident. However, the controversy subsided, and both McNeil and Bolt went to the CARIFTA Games, where Bolt set championship records in the 200 m and 400 m with times of 21.12 s and 47.33 s, respectively. He continued to set records with 20.61 s and 47.12 s finishes at the Central American and Caribbean Junior Championships.

Former Prime Minister P. J. Patterson recognised Bolt's talent and arranged for him to move to Kingston, along with Jermaine Gonzales, so he could train with the Jamaica Amateur Athletic Association (JAAA) at the University of Technology, Jamaica.

Rise to prominence

The 2002 World Junior Championships before a home crowd in Kingston, Jamaica, gave Bolt a chance to prove his credentials on the world stage. By the age of 15, he had grown to tall, and he physically stood out amongst his peers. He won the 200 m, in a time of 20.61 s, 0.03 seconds slower than his personal best of 20.58 s set in the 1st round. Bolt's 200 m win made him the youngest world-junior gold medalist ever. The expectation from the home crowd had made him so nervous that he had put his shoes on the wrong feet. However, it turned out to be a revelatory experience for Bolt as he vowed never again to let himself be affected by pre-race nerves. As a member of the Jamaican sprint relay team, he also took two silver medals and set national junior records in the 4×100 metres and 4×400 metres relay, running times of 39.15 s and 3:04.06 minutes respectively.

The flow of medals continued as he won another gold at the 2003 World Youth Championships. He set a new championship record in the 200 m with a time of 20.40 s, despite a 1.1 m/s head wind. Michael Johnson, the 200 m world-record holder, took note of Bolt's potential but worried that the young sprinter might be over-pressured, stating, "It's all about what he does three, four, five years down the line". Bolt had also impressed the athletics hierarchy, and he received the IAAF Rising Star Award for 2002.

Bolt turned his main focus to the 200 m and equalled Roy Martin's world junior record of 20.13 s at the Pan-American Junior Championships. This performance attracted interest from the press, and his times in the 200 m and 400 m led to him being touted as a possible successor to Johnson. Indeed, at sixteen years old, Bolt had reached times that Johnson did not register until he was twenty, and Bolt's 200 m time was superior to Maurice Greene's season's best that year.

In his final Jamaican High School Championships in 2003, he broke both the 200 m and 400 m records with times of 20.25 s and 45.30 s, respectively. Bolt's runs were a significant improvement upon the previous records, beating the 200 m best by more than half a second and the 400 m record by almost a second.

Bolt was growing more popular in his homeland. Howard Hamilton, who was given the task of Public Defender by the government, urged the JAAA to nurture him and prevent burnout, calling Bolt "the most phenomenal sprinter ever produced by this island". His popularity and the attractions of the capital city were beginning to be a burden to the young sprinter. Bolt was increasingly unfocused on his athletic career and preferred to eat fast food, play basketball, and party in Kingston's club scene. In the absence of a disciplined lifestyle, he became ever-more reliant on his natural ability to beat his competitors on the track.

As the reigning 200 m champion at both the World Youth and World Junior championships, Bolt hoped to take a clean sweep of the world 200 m championships in the Senior World Championships in Paris. Bolt beat all comers at the 200 m in the World Championship trials, but he was pragmatic about his chances and noted that, even if he did not make the final, he would consider setting a personal best a success. However, he suffered a bout of conjunctivitis before the event, and it ruined his training schedule. Realising he would not be in peak condition, the JAAA refused to let him participate in the finals on the grounds that he was too young and inexperienced. Bolt was dismayed at missing out on the opportunity, but focused on getting himself in shape to gain a place on the Jamaican Olympic team instead. Even though he missed the World Championships, Bolt was awarded the IAAF Rising Star Award for the 2003 season on the strength of his junior record-equalling run.

Professional athletics career

Under the guidance of new coach Fitz Coleman, Bolt turned professional in 2004, beginning with the CARIFTA Games in Bermuda. He became the first junior sprinter to run the 200 m in under twenty seconds, taking the world junior record outright with a time of 19.93 s. A hamstring injury in May ruined Bolt's chances of competing in the 2004 World Junior Championships, but he was still chosen for the Jamaican Olympic squad. Bolt headed to the 2004 Athens Olympics with confidence and a new record on his side. However, he was hampered by a leg injury and was eliminated in the first round of the 200 metres with a disappointing time of 21.05 s. American colleges offered Bolt track scholarships on the strength of his performances, but the teenager from Trelawny refused them all, stating that he was content to stay in his homeland of Jamaica. Bolt instead chose the surroundings of the University of Technology, Jamaica, as his professional training ground, staying with the university's primitive track and weight room that had served him well in his amateur years.

The year 2005 signalled a fresh start for Bolt in the form of a new coach, Glen Mills, and a new attitude to athletics. Mills recognised Bolt's potential and aimed to cease the sprinter's unprofessional approach to the sport. Bolt began training with Mills in preparation for the upcoming athletics season, partnering with more-seasoned sprinters such as Kim Collins and Dwain Chambers. The year began well, and in July he knocked more than a third of a second off the 200 m CAC Championship record with a run of 20.03 s, then registered his 200 m season's best at London's Crystal Palace, running in 19.99 s. Misfortune awaited Bolt at the next major event, the 2005 World Championships in Helsinki. Bolt felt that both his work ethic and athleticism had much improved since the 2004 Olympics, and he saw the World Championships as a way to live up to expectations, stating, "I really want to make up for what happened in Athens. Hopefully, everything will fall into place". Bolt qualified with runs under 21 s, but he suffered an injury in the final, finishing in last place with a time of 26.27 s. Injuries were preventing him from completing a full professional athletics season, and the eighteen-year-old Bolt still had not proven his mettle in the major world-athletics competitions. Bolt was involved in a car accident in November, and although he suffered only minor facial lacerations, his training schedule was further upset. His manager, Norman Peart, made Bolt's training less intensive, and he had fully recuperated the following week. Bolt had continued to improve his performances, and he reached the world top-5 rankings in 2005 and 2006. Peart and Mills stated their intentions to push Bolt to do longer sprinting distances with the aim of making the 400 m event his primary event by 2007 or 2008. Bolt was less enthusiastic, and demanded that he feel comfortable in his sprinting. He suffered another hamstring injury in March 2006, forcing him to withdraw from the 2006 Commonwealth Games in Melbourne, and he did not return to track events until May. After his recovery, Bolt was given new training exercises to improve flexibility, and the plans to move him up to the 400 m event were put on hold.

Upon his return to competition, the 200 m remained his primary event, and he beat Justin Gatlin's meet record in Ostrava, Czech Republic. Bolt had aspired to run under twenty seconds to claim a season's best but, despite the fact that bad weather had impaired his run, he was happy to end the meeting with just the victory. However, a sub-20-second finish was soon his, as he set a new personal best of 19.88 s at the 2006 Athletissima Grand Prix in Lausanne, Switzerland, finishing behind Xavier Carter and Tyson Gay to earn a bronze medal. Bolt had focused his athletics aims, stating that 2006 was a year to gain experience. Also, he was more keen on competing over longer distances, setting his sights on running regularly in both 200 m and 400 m events within the next two years. Bolt claimed his first major world medal two months later at the IAAF World Athletics Final in Stuttgart, Germany. He passed the finishing post with a time of 20.10 s, gaining a bronze medal in the process. The IAAF World Cup in Athens, Greece, yielded Bolt's first senior international silver medal. Wallace Spearmon from the United States won gold with a championship record time of 19.87 s, beating Bolt's respectable time of 19.96 s. Further 200 m honours on both the regional and international stages awaited Bolt in 2007. The young Jamaican yearned to run in the 100 metres, but coach Mills diverted his attention, stating that he could run the shorter distance if he broke the 200 m national record. In the Jamaican Championships, he ran 19.75 s in the 200 m, breaking the 36-year-old Jamaican record held by Don Quarrie by 0.11 s.

Mills complied with Bolt's demand to run in the 100 m, and he was entered to run the event at the 23rd Vardinoyiannia meeting in Rethymno, Crete. In his debut tournament run, he set a personal best of 10.03 s, winning the gold medal and feeding his enthusiasm for the event.

He built on this achievement at the 2007 World Championships in Osaka, Japan, winning a silver medal. Bolt recorded 19.91 s with a headwind of 0.8 m/s but this paled in comparison with Tyson Gay's time of 19.76 s, which set a new championship record.

The Jamaican national record fell when Bolt partnered with Asafa Powell, Marvin Anderson, and Nesta Carter in the 4×100 metres relay. However, their finish in 37.89 s was not enough to beat the Americans' time of 37.78 s. Bolt did not win any gold medals at the major tournaments in 2007, but Mills felt that Bolt's technique was much improved, pinpointing improvements in Bolt's balance at the turns over 200 m and an increase in his stride frequency, giving him more driving power on the track.

World-record breaker

The silver medals from the 2007 Osaka World Championships boosted Bolt's desire to run, and he took a more serious, more mature stance towards his career. Bolt continued to develop in the 100 m, and he entered to run in the event at the Jamaica Invitational in Kingston. On 3 May 2008, Bolt ran a time of 9.76 s, aided by a tail wind of 1.8 m/s, considerably improving upon his previous personal best of 10.03 s. This was the second-fastest legal performance in the history of the event; second only to compatriot Asafa Powell's 9.74 s record set the previous year in Rieti, Italy. Rival Tyson Gay lauded the performance, praising Bolt's form and technique especially. Michael Johnson, who was observing the race, said that he was shocked at how quickly he had improved over the 100 m distance. The Jamaican surprised even himself with the time, but coach Glen Mills remained confident that there was more to come.

Mills' prediction came true before the end of the month when Bolt established a new 100 m world record on 31 May 2008. Pushed on by a tail wind of 1.7 m/s, Bolt ran 9.72 s at the Reebok Grand Prix held in the Icahn Stadium in New York City, breaking Powell's record. The record time was even more remarkable in light of the fact that it was only his fifth senior run over the distance. Gay again finished second and commended Bolt's physical superiority, stating, "It looked like his knees were going past my face". Commentators noted that Bolt appeared to have gained a psychological advantage over fellow Olympic contender Gay.

In June 2008, Bolt responded to claims that he was a lazy athlete, saying that the comments were unjustified, and he trained hard to achieve his potential. However, he surmised that such comments stemmed from his lack of enthusiasm for the 400 metres event, and chose to not make the effort to train for distance running. Turning his efforts to the 200 m, Bolt proved that he could excel in multiple events—first setting the world-leading time in Ostrava, then breaking the national record for the second time with a 19.67 s finish in Athens, Greece. Although Mills still preferred that Bolt focus on the longer distances, the acceptance of Bolt's demand to run in the 100 m worked for both sprinter and trainer. Bolt was more focused in practice, and a training schedule to boost his top speed and his stamina, in preparation for the Olympics, had improved both his 100 m and 200 m times. His confidence was building, and he was sure that he would perform well in the upcoming Olympics.

2008 Summer Olympics

Bolt announced that he would double-up with the 100 metres and 200 metres events at the Beijing Summer Olympics, and the new 100 m world-record holder was the favourite to win both. Michael Johnson, the 200 m and 400 m record holder, personally backed the sprinter, saying that he did not believe that a lack of experience would work against him. Bolt qualified for the 100 m final with times of 9.92 s and 9.85 s in the quarter-finals and semifinals, respectively.

In the Olympic 100 m final, Bolt broke new ground, winning in 9.69 s (unofficially 9.683 s) with a reaction time of 0.165 s. This was an improvement upon his own world record, and he was well ahead of second-place finisher Richard Thompson, who finished in 9.89 s. Not only was the record set without a favourable wind (+0.0 m/s), but he also visibly slowed down to celebrate before he finished and his shoelace was untied. Bolt's coach reported that, based upon the speed of Bolt's opening 60 m, he could have finished with a time of 9.52 s. After scientific analysis of Bolt's run by the Institute of Theoretical Astrophysics at the University of Oslo, Hans Eriksen and his colleagues also predicted a sub 9.60 s time. Considering factors such as Bolt's position, acceleration and velocity in comparison with second-place-finisher Thompson, the team estimated that Bolt could have finished in 9.55±0.04 s had he not slowed to celebrate before the finishing line.

Bolt stated that setting a record was not a priority for him, and that his goal was just to win the gold medal, Jamaica's first of the 2008 Games. Olympic medalist Kriss Akabusi construed Bolt's chest slapping before the finish line as showboating, noting that the actions cost Bolt an even faster record time. IOC president Jacques Rogge also condemned the Jamaican's actions as disrespectful. Bolt denied that this was the purpose of his celebration by saying, "I wasn't bragging. When I saw I wasn't covered, I was just happy". Lamine Diack, president of the IAAF, supported Bolt and said that his celebration was appropriate given the circumstances of his victory. Jamaican government minister Edmund Bartlett also defended Bolt's actions, stating, "We have to see it in the glory of their moment and give it to them. We have to allow the personality of youth to express itself".

Bolt then focused on attaining a gold medal in the 200 m event, aiming to emulate Carl Lewis' double win in the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics. Michael Johnson felt that Bolt would easily win gold but believed that his own world record of 19.32 s set at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta would remain intact at the Olympics. Bolt eased through the first and second rounds of the 200 m, jogging towards the end of his run both times. He won his semifinal and progressed to the final as the favourite to win. Retired Jamaican sprinter Don Quarrie praised Bolt, saying he was confident that Johnson's record could be beaten. The following day, at the final, he won Jamaica's fourth gold of the Games, setting a new world and Olympic record of 19.30 s. Johnson's record fell despite the fact that Bolt was impeded by a 0.9 m/s headwind. The feat made him the first sprinter since Quarrie to hold both 100 m and 200 m world records simultaneously and the first since the introduction of electronic timing. Furthermore, Bolt became the first sprinter to break both records at the same Olympics. Unlike in the 100 m final, Bolt sprinted hard all the way to the finishing line in the 200 m race, even dipping his chest to improve his time. Following the race, "Happy Birthday" was played over the stadium's sound system as his 22nd birthday would begin at midnight.

Two days later, Bolt ran as the third leg in the Jamaican 4x100 metres relay team, increasing his gold medal total to three. Along with teammates Nesta Carter, Michael Frater, and Asafa Powell, Bolt broke another world and Olympic record, their 37.10 s finish breaking the previous record by three tenths of a second. Powell, who anchored the team to the finishing line, lamented the loss of his 100 m record to Bolt but showed no animosity towards his Jamaican rival, stating that he was delighted to help him set his third world record. Following his victories, Bolt donated US$50,000 to the children of the Sichuan province of China to help those harmed by the 2008 Sichuan earthquake.

Bolt's record-setting runs caused commentators not only to praise his achievements but also to speculate about his potential to become one of the most successful sprinters ever. Critics hailed his Olympic success as a new beginning for a sport that had long suffered through high-profile drug scandals. The previous six years had seen the BALCO scandal, Tim Montgomery and Justin Gatlin stripped of their 100 m world records, and Marion Jones returning three Olympic gold medals. All three sprinters were disqualified from athletics after drugs tests detected banned substances in their systems. Bolt's record-breaking performances caused suspicion among some commentators, including Victor Conte, and the lack of an independent Caribbean anti-doping federation raised more concerns. The accusations of drug use were vehemently rejected by Glen Mills (Bolt's coach) and Herb Elliott (the Jamaican athletics team doctor). Elliott, a member of the IAAF anti-doping commission, urged those concerned about the issue to "come down and see our programme, come down and see our testing, we have nothing to hide". Mills had been equally ardent that Bolt was a clean athlete, declaring to the ''Jamaica Gleaner'': "We will test any time, any day, any part of the body...[he] doesn't even like to take vitamins". Bolt stated that he had been tested four times prior to the Olympics, and all had tested negative for banned substances. He also welcomed anti-doping authorities to test him to prove that he was clean, stating, "We work hard and we perform well and we know we're clean".

}}

After the Olympics

The end of the 2008 athletics season saw Bolt compete in the ÅF Golden League, beginning in Weltklasse Zürich. Despite having the slowest start among his competitors in the 100 m race, he still crossed the finishing line in 9.83 s. Even though the time was slower than both his newly set world record and Asafa Powell's track record, it was still among the top-fifteen 100 m finishes by any sprinter to that date. Bolt admitted that he was not running at full strength, suffering from a cold, but he had concentrated on both winning the race and finishing the season in good health. At the Super Grand Prix final in Lausanne, Bolt ran his second-fastest 200 m with a time of 19.63 s, equalling Xavier Carter's track record. However, it was the 100 m final, featuring Asafa Powell, that drew the most interest. Powell had moved closer to Bolt's world record after setting a new personal best of 9.72 s, reaffirming his status as Bolt's main contender. Bolt's final event of the season came three days later at the Golden League final in Brussels. This was the first 100 m race featuring both Bolt and Powell since the final in the Olympics. Both Jamaicans broke the track record, but Bolt came out on top with a time of 9.77 s, beating Powell by 0.06 s. Victory, however, did not come as smoothly as it had in Beijing. Bolt made the slowest start of the nine competitors and had to recover ground in cold conditions and against a 0.9 m/s headwind. Yet the results confirmed Jamaican dominance in the 100 m, with nine of the ten-fastest legal times in history being recorded by either Bolt or Powell. On his return to Jamaica, Bolt was honoured in a homecoming celebration and received an Order of Distinction in recognition of his achievements at the Olympics.

He was selected as the IAAF Male Athlete of the year and won a Special Olympic Award for his performances. However, Bolt turned his attention to future events, suggesting that he could aim to break the 400 metres world record in 2010 as no major championships were scheduled that year.

2009 Berlin World Championships

Bolt started the season competing over 400 metres in order to improve his speed, winning two races and registering 45.54 s in Kingston, and windy conditions gave him his first sub-10 second finish of the season in the 100 m in March. In late April Bolt suffered minor leg injuries in a car crash. However, he quickly recovered following minor surgery and (after cancelling a track meet in Jamaica) he stated that he was fit to compete in the 150 metres street race at the Manchester Great City Games. Bolt won the race in 14.35 s, the fastest time ever recorded for 150 m. Despite not being at full fitness, he took the 100 and 200 m titles at the Jamaican national championships, with runs of 9.86 s and 20.25 s respectively. This meant he had qualified for both events at the 2009 World Championships. Rival Tyson Gay suggested that Bolt's 100 m record was within his grasp, but Bolt dismissed the claim and instead noted that he was more interested in Asafa Powell's return from injury. Bolt defied unfavourable conditions at the Athletissima meet in July, running 19.59 seconds into a 0.9 m/s headwind and rain, to record the fourth fastest time ever over 200 m, one hundredth off Gay's best time.

At the 2009 World Championships in August, Bolt eased through the 100 m heats, clocking the fastest ever pre-final performance of 9.89 seconds. The final was the first time Bolt and Gay had met in the season, and Bolt improved his world record with a time of 9.58 s to win his first World Championship gold medal. Gay finished with a time of 9.71 s, 0.02 s off Bolt's 9.69 s world-record run in Beijing. Taking over a tenth of a second off the previous best mark, this was the largest ever margin of improvement in the 100 m world record since the beginning of electronic timing.

Although Gay withdrew from the second race of the competition, the Jamaican once again produced world record-breaking form in the 200 metres final. He broke his own record by 0.11 seconds, finishing with a time of 19.19 seconds. He won the 200 m race by the biggest margin in World Championships history, even though the race had three other athletes running under 19.90 seconds, the greatest number ever in the event. Bolt's pace impressed even the more experienced of his competitors; third-placed Wallace Spearmon complimented his speed, and former Olympic champion Shawn Crawford said "Just coming out there...I felt like I was in a video game, that guy was moving – fast". Bolt pointed out that an important factor in his performance at the World Championships was his improved start to the races: his reaction times in the 100 m (0.146) and 200 m (0.133) were significantly faster than those he had produced in his world record runs at the Beijing Olympics. However, he, together with other members of Jamaican 4x100 m relay team, fell short of their own world record of 37.10 s set at 2008 Summer Olympics by timing 37.31 s, which is, however, a championship record and the second fastest time in history at that date.

On the last day of the Berlin Championships, the governing Mayor of Berlin, Klaus Wowereit, presented Bolt with a 12-foot high section of the Berlin Wall in a small ceremony, saying Bolt had shown that “one can tear down walls that had been considered as insurmountable.” The nearly three-ton segment will be delivered to Bolt's training camp in Jamaica.

Several days after Bolt broke the world records in 100 and 200 metres events, Mike Powell, the world record holder in long jump (8.95 metres set in 1991) argued that Bolt could become the first man to jump over 9 metres, the long jump event being "a perfect fit for his speed and height". At the end of the season he was selected as the IAAF World Athlete of the Year for the second year running.

2010: Diamond League and broken streak

Early on in the 2010 outdoor season, Bolt ran 19.56 seconds in the 200 m in Kingston, Jamaica for the fourth-fastest run of all-time, although he stated that he had no record breaking ambitions for the forthcoming season. He took to the international circuit May with wins in East Asia at the Colorful Daegu Pre-Championships Meeting and then a comfortable win in his 2010 IAAF Diamond League debut at the Shanghai Golden Grand Prix. Bolt made an attempt to break Michael Johnson's best time over the rarely competed 300 metres event at the Golden Spike meeting in Ostrava. He failed to match Johnson's ten-year-old record of 30.85 and suffered a setback in that his 30.97-second run in wet weather had left him with an Achilles tendon problem.

On his return from injury a month later, he asserted himself with a 100 m win at the Athletissima meeting in Lausanne (9.82 seconds) and a victory over Asafa Powell at Meeting Areva in Paris (9.84 seconds). Despite this run of form, he suffered only the second loss of his career in a 100 m final at the DN Galan. Tyson Gay soundly defeated him with a run of 9.84 to Bolt's 9.97 seconds, and the Jamaican reflected that he had slacked off in training early in the season while Gay had been better prepared and in a better condition. This marked Bolt's first loss to Gay over 100 m, which coincidentally occurred in the same stadium where Powell had beaten Bolt for the first time two years earlier.

2011 Daegu World Championships

Considered the overwhelming favourite to win in the 100 metres at the 2011 World Championships in Daegu, Bolt was eliminated from the final for a false start. Usain Bolt's countryman, Yohan Blake won in a season best of 9.92 seconds.

Personal life

Bolt expresses a love for dancing and his character is frequently described as laid-back and relaxed. Bolt's Jamaican track and field idols include Herb McKenley and former Jamaican 100 m 200 m world record holder, Don Quarrie. Michael Johnson, the former 200 m world and Olympic record holder, is also held in high esteem by Bolt. The first sport to interest him was cricket and he said if he was not a sprinter he would be a fast bowler instead. As a child he was a supporter of Pakistan and admired the bowling of Waqar Younis. He is also a fan of Indian batsman Sachin Tendulkar, West Indian opener Chris Gayle and Australian opener Matthew Hayden. During a charity cricket match Bolt clean bowled West Indies captain and legendary batsman Chris Gayle. Gayle was complimentary of Bolt's pace and swing. Bolt also whacked a six as he showed off his batting skills as well. The six came off Chris Gayle's bowling. Another bowler complimentary of Bolt's pace was former West Indies fast-bowling great Curtly Ambrose. Bolt has also expressed his love for football and is a fan of Manchester United as well as Real Madrid. Bolt has also declared he is a fan of Dutch striker Ruud van Nistelrooy. Following a race in Manchester, he met the team at their training ground and offered Portuguese national Cristiano Ronaldo some sprinting advice. Bolt was a special guest of Manchester United at the 2011 UEFA Champions League final in London, where he stated he'd like to play for them after he retires.

In 2010, he also revealed his fondness of music, when he played a reggae DJ set to a crowd in Paris.

After winning the 200 m title in the 2002 World Junior Championships in Kingston, Jamaica, Bolt signed a sponsorship deal with Puma. To promote Bolt's chase for Olympic glory in the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, China, Puma released a series of videos including Bolt's then-world-record-setting run in Icahn Stadium and his Olympic preparations. After his world record breaking run in New York City, which was preceded by a lightning storm, the press frequently made puns on the Jamaican's name, nicknaming him "Lightning Bolt" and the "Bolt from the blue". During the Beijing 2008 100 m final, Bolt wore golden Puma Complete Theseus spikes that had "Beijing 100 m Gold" emblazoned across them. His athletics agent is PACE Sports Management.

In 2010, Bolt signed a lucrative publishing deal with HarperCollins for an autobiography, which was negotiated by Chris Nathaniel of NVA Management. This is scheduled for release in 2012. During a press conference in Paris on 15 July 2010, Bolt declined any comment on what would be contained within the book saying, "you can't really give away anything in your book ... should be exciting, it's my life, and I'm a cool and exciting guy".

Recognition

As a result of Bolt's successes in athletics, he was named the Laureus World Sportsman of the Year for 2009 and 2010.

IAAF World Athlete of the Year: 2008, 2009

Track & Field Athlete of the Year: 2008, 2009

Laureus World Sportsman of the Year: 2009, 2010

BBC Overseas Sports Personality of the Year: 2008, 2009

Statistics

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Personal bests

!Event	!Time (seconds)	!Venue	!Date	!Records	!Notes
100 metres	9.58	Berlin, Germany	16 August 2009
150 metres	14.35	Manchester, United Kingdom	17 May 2009	World best	He ran the last 100 m in 8.70, the fastest ever recorded time over a 100 m distance. This would equal an average speed of 41.38 km/h.
	19.19	Berlin, Germany	20 August 2009
300 metres	30.97	Ostrava, Czech Republic	27 May 2010		This is the second fastest time, behind Michael Johnson's 30.85.
400 metres	45.28		5 May 2007
	37.10	Beijing, China			Shared with Asafa Powell, Michael Frater and Nesta Carter. Also holds the second fastest time with 37.31.

Records

Bolt's personal best of 9.58 seconds in the 100 metres is the fastest ever legal time. Bolt also holds the second fastest time of 9.69 seconds (more precisely 9.683), the current Olympic record. Tyson Gay recorded a time of 9.68 s at the 2008 US Olympic Trials, but was aided with a tail wind of 4.1 m/s, exceeding the legal limit of 2.0 m/s set by the IAAF and nullifying its inclusion as a world record. Obadele Thompson's run of 9.69 s in 1996 is also not recognised as it was aided by a 5.0 m/s tail wind.

Bolt's personal best of 19.19 s in the 200 metres is the world record. This was recorded at the 2009 World Championships in Athletics in Berlin against a headwind of −0.3 m/s. He has also broken the Olympic record with a time of 19.30 s (more precisely 19.296 s)

The Jamaican relay team including Bolt, set the 4x100 metres world and Olympic records at the 2008 Olympics with a time of 37.10 seconds. This is the only run in the IAAF top ten performances which was not set by an American team.

Bolt also holds the 200 metres world teenage best results for the age categories 15 (20.58 s), 16 (20.13 s, world youth record), 17 (19.93 s) and 18 (19.93 s, world junior record). He also holds the 150 metres world best set in 2009, during which he ran the last 100 metres in 8.70 seconds, the quickest timed 100 metres ever.

Average speed

From his record time of 9.58 s for the 100 m sprint Usain Bolt's average ground speed equates to: 37.58 km/h or 23.35 mph. However, once his reaction time of 0.15 s is subtracted, his time is closer to 9.43 s, making his average speed closer to 38.18 km/h or 23.72 mph.

Honours

{| |- |rowspan=3|2002 |rowspan=3|World Junior Championships |rowspan=3|Kingston, Jamaica | style="background:gold;"| 1st |200 m |20.61 |- | style="background:silver;"| 2nd |4×100 m relay |39.15 NJR |- | style="background:silver;"| 2nd |4×400 m relay |3:04.06 NJR |- |2003 |World Youth Championships |Sherbrooke, Canada | style="background:gold;"| 1st |200 m |20.40 |- |rowspan=2|2003 |rowspan=2|Pan American Junior Championships |rowspan=2|Bridgetown, Barbados | style="background:gold;"| 1st |200 m |20.13 WYB |- | style="background:silver;"| 2nd |4×100 m relay |39.40 |- |2004 |CARIFTA Games |Hamilton, Bermuda | style="background:gold;"| 1st |200 m |19.93 WJR |- |2005 |Central American and Caribbean Championships |Nassau, Bahamas | style="background:gold;"| 1st |200 m |20.03 |- |2006 |World Athletics Final |Stuttgart, Germany | style="background:#c96;"| 3rd |200 m |20.10 |- |2006 |IAAF World Cup |Athens, Greece | style="background:silver;"| 2nd |200 m |19.96 |- |2007 |World Championships |Osaka, Japan | style="background:silver;"| 2nd |200 metres |19.91 |- |2008 |Reebok Grand Prix |New York City, United States | style="background:gold;"| 1st |100 m |9.72 |- |rowspan=3|2008 |rowspan=3|Olympic Games |rowspan=3|Beijing, China | style="background:gold;"| 1st |100 metres |9.69 |- | style="background:gold;"| 1st |200 metres |19.30 |- | style="background:gold;"| 1st |4×100 metres relay |37.10 |- |rowspan=3|2009 |rowspan=3|World Championships |rowspan=3|Berlin, Germany | style="background:gold;"| 1st |100 metres |9.58 |- | style="background:gold;"| 1st |200 metres |19.19 |- | style="background:gold;"| 1st |4×100 metres relay |37.31 CR |}

See also

Men's 100 metres world record progression

Men's 200 metres world record progression

List of multiple Olympic gold medalists

List of multiple Olympic gold medalists at a single Games

Athletics in Jamaica

Jamaica at the Olympics

References

External links

Official website

Usain Bolt timeline via ''The Daily Telegraph''

Lightning Strikes Twice – slideshow by ''The First Post''

Asafa Powell}} |- |- Tyson Gay}} David Rudisha}} |- |- Roger Federer}} Rafael Nadal}} |- |- |- Asafa Powell}} Tyson Gay}} Tyson Gay}}

Category:Article Feedback Pilot Category:1986 births Category:Living people Category:Male sprinters Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 2004 Summer Olympics Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 2008 Summer Olympics Category:Jamaican sprinters Category:Laureus World Sports Awards winners Category:Olympic athletes of Jamaica Category:Olympic gold medalists for Jamaica Category:People from Trelawny Parish Category:World record holders in athletics (track and field) Category:Olympic medalists in athletics (track and field)

ar:يوسين بولت az:Useyn Bolt be:Усэйн Болт be-x-old:Усэйн Болт bs:Usain Bolt br:Usain Bolt bg:Юсейн Болт ca:Usain Bolt cs:Usain Bolt cy:Usain Bolt da:Usain Bolt de:Usain Bolt et:Usain Bolt el:Γιουσέιν Μπολτ es:Usain Bolt eo:Usain Bolt eu:Usain Bolt fa:اوسین بولت fr:Usain Bolt ga:Usain Bolt gl:Usain Bolt ki:Usain Bolt gu:યુસૈન બોલ્ટ ko:우사인 볼트 hi:उसैन बोल्ट hr:Usain Bolt id:Usain Bolt is:Usain Bolt it:Usain Bolt he:יוסיין בולט kn:ಯುಸೈನ್ ಬೋಲ್ಟ್ ka:უსაინ ბოლტი sw:Usain Bolt ht:Usain Bolt la:Usain Bolt lv:Useins Bolts lt:Usain Bolt hu:Usain Bolt mk:Јусејн Болт ml:ഉസൈൻ ബോൾട്ട് mr:युसेन बोल्ट ms:Usain Bolt mn:Усэйн Болт nl:Usain Bolt ja:ウサイン・ボルト no:Usain Bolt nn:Usain Bolt oc:Usain Bolt pl:Usain Bolt pt:Usain Bolt ro:Usain Bolt ru:Болт, Усэйн sc:Usain Bolt sq:Usain Bolt scn:Usain Bolt simple:Usain Bolt sk:Usain Bolt sl:Usain Bolt szl:Usain Bolt sr:Јусејн Болт sh:Usain Bolt fi:Usain Bolt sv:Usain Bolt tl:Usain Bolt ta:உசேன் போல்ட் te:ఉసేన్ బోల్ట్ th:ยูเซน โบลต์ tr:Usain Bolt uk:Усейн Болт vi:Usain Bolt wa:Usain Bolt yo:Usain Bolt zh:尤塞恩·博尔特

name	Yohan Blake
nationality	Jamaican
sport	Running
birth date	December 26, 1989
birth place	St. James, Jamaica
pb	100m: 9.89 s (London 2010) 200m: 19.78 s (Fontvieille 2010)
medaltemplates	}}

}} Yohan Blake (born December 26, 1989) is a Jamaican sprinter and the current 100 metre World Champion. He holds the national junior record for the 100 metres, and tied Seun Ogunkoya as the youngest sprinter to have broken the 10-second barrier (at 19 years, 197 days). Blake's personal best of 9.89 seconds makes him the fourth fastest Jamaican runner, after Nesta Carter, Asafa Powell and Usain Bolt. His fastest run under any conditions is 9.80 seconds in May 2011 in Kingston, but the wind assistance (+2.2 m/s) was over the legal limit. He is coached by Glen Mills, and is training partners with Bolt and Daniel Bailey.

Career

Born in St. James, Jamaica, Blake is the son of Veda and Shirley Blake. He attended St. Jago High School in Spanish Town. He set the fastest time by a Jamaican junior sprinter over 100 m with 10.11 seconds. The record was set at the CARIFTA Games held in the Turks and Caicos islands where he also won the 200 metres and led his team to record breaking runs in the 4 × 400 metres relay and 4 × 100 metres relay.

Blake won the 100 metres "B" race at the 2009 Reebok Grand Prix. His exploits at the Golden Gala in July represented a significant improvement. He proved himself to be a serious competitor at the senior level: he took third place behind Tyson Gay and Asafa Powell and improved his personal best with a 10-second barrier-breaking run of 9.96 seconds, becoming the youngest ever athlete ever to do so. He improved to 9.93 seconds shortly after, taking third place behind training partners Bolt and Daniel Bailey at the Meeting Areva.

Prior to the 2009 World Championships, Blake (along with Marvin Anderson and Sheri-Ann Brooks) tested positive for the stimulant 4-Methyl-2-hexanamine. A disciplinary panel organised by the Jamaican Anti-Doping Commission (JADCO) cleared him of a doping infraction on the grounds that the drug was not on the World Anti-Doping Agency's banned list. However, JADCO appealed their own panel's ruling, stating that the athlete should be disciplined as the drug was similar in structure to the banned substance tuaminoheptane. As the panel would resolve the issue after the World Championships, the Jamaica Amateur Athletic Association took the precaution of withdrawing Blake from the relay race. The appeals tribunal decided that a ban would be appropriate, and Blake and the three other sprinters each received a three month ban from competition.

At the 2011 World Championships, Blake comfortably made the final. Following the shock disqualification of compatriot Usain Bolt, Blake won the Gold medal in a time of 9.92s.

Personal bests

!Event	!Time (seconds)	!Venue	!Date
60 metres	6.75	Madison Square Garden, New York, United States	1 February 2008
100 metres	9.89 †	London, United Kingdom	13 August 2010
200 metres	19.78	Fontvieille, Monaco	22 July 2010

† = His best time of 9.80 seconds was completing with a tailwind of wind of 2.2 m/s – over the legal limit for record purposes.

All information taken from IAAF profile

Achievements

{| |- |2005 |World Youth Championships |Marrakech, Morocco |7th |100 m | |- |rowspan=2|2006 |rowspan=2|World Junior Championships |rowspan=2|Beijing, China |bgcolor="cc9966" | 3rd |100 m | |- |bgcolor="gold" | 1st |4x100 m relay | |- |rowspan=2|2008 |rowspan=2|World Junior Championships |rowspan=2|Bydgoszcz, Poland |4th |100 m | |- |bgcolor="silver" | 2nd |4x100 m relay | |- |2011 |rowspan=2|2011 World Championships in Athletics |rowspan=2|Daegu, South Korea |bgcolor="gold"| 1st |100 m |9.92 |}

National Junior Championships: 2006 (1st, 100m & 200m)

CAC Junior Championships: 2006 (1st, 100m)

References

External links

"Yohan Blake showcases speed, talent at Penn Relays"

"Do You know Yohan Blake"

Category:1989 births Category:Living people Category:Jamaican sprinters Category:People from Saint James Parish, Jamaica Category:Doping cases in athletics Category:Jamaican sportspeople in doping cases

cs:Yohan Blake de:Yohan Blake es:Yohan Blake fr:Yohan Blake ko:요한 블레이크 it:Yohan Blake he:יוהאן בלייק lv:Johans Bleiks lt:Yohan Blake nl:Yohan Blake ja:ヨハン・ブレーク no:Yohan Blake pl:Yohan Blake ru:Блейк, Йохан fi:Yohan Blake sv:Yohan Blake

name	Florence Griffith Joyner
fullname	Florence Griffith Joyner
nicknames	Flo-Jo
nationality
sport	Running
event	100 meters, 200 meters
birth date	December 21, 1959
birth place	Los Angeles, California
retired	1988
death date	September 21, 1998
death place	Mission Viejo, California
height
weight
country	United States
medaltemplates	}}

}}

Florence Griffith-Joyner (born Florence Delorez Griffith), also known as Flo-Jo (December 21, 1959 – September 21, 1998) was an American track and field athlete. She is considered the "fastest woman of all time" based on the fact that she still holds the world record for both the 100 metres and 200 metres, both set in 1988 and never seriously challenged. She died of epilepsy in 1998 at the age of 38.

Life

Griffith was born in Los Angeles and raised in the Jordan Downs public housing complex. During the late 1980s she became a popular figure in international track and field because of her record-setting performances and flashy personal style. She was the wife of triple jumper Al Joyner and the sister-in-law of heptathlete and long jumper Jackie Joyner-Kersee.

Griffith finished fourth in the 200 m at the inaugural World Championship in 1983. The following year she gained much more attention, though mostly because of her extremely long and colorful fingernails rather than her silver medal in the Los Angeles Olympics 200 m. In 1985, she won the final of the Grand Prix with 11.00 seconds. After these Olympics she spent less time running, and married the 1984 Olympic triple jump champion Al Joyner in 1987.

Returning at the 1987 World Championships, she finished again second in the 200 m. She stunned the world when — known as a 200 m runner — she ran a 100 m World Record of 10.49 in the quarter-finals of the US Olympic Trials. Several sources indicate that this time was very likely wind-assisted. Although at the time of the race the wind meter at the event measured 0.0, indicating no wind, observers noted evidence of significant wind, and wind speeds up to 7 meters/second were noted at other times during the event. Since 1997 the International Athletics Annual of the Association of Track and Field Statisticians has listed this performance as "probably strongly wind assisted, but recognised as a world record". Griffith-Joyner's coach later stated that he believed the 10.49 run had been aided by wind. Outside this race, Griffith-Joyner's fastest time without wind assistance was 10.61 seconds, which would give her the world record anyway.

By now known to the world as "Flo-Jo", Griffith-Joyner was the big favorite for the titles in the sprint events at the 1988 Summer Olympics. In the 100 m final, she ran a wind-assisted 10.54, beating her nearest rival Evelyn Ashford by 0.3 seconds. In the 200 m quarter-final, she set a world record and then broke that record again winning the final by 0.4 seconds with a time of 21.34. She also ran in the 4 x 100 m and 4 x 400 m relay teams. She won a gold medal in the former event, and a silver in the latter (which is still the second fastest time in history behind the winner of that race), her first international 4 x 400 m relay. Her effort in the 100 m was ranked 98th in British TV Channel 4's 100 Greatest Sporting Moments in 2002. She was the 1988 recipient of the James E. Sullivan Award as the top amateur athlete in the United States. Griffith-Joyner retired from competitive sports shortly afterwards. In 1996, Griffith-Joyner appeared on the Charlie Rose show and announced her comeback to competitive athletics, only this time in the 400m. Her rationale was she had already set world marks in both the 100 and 200 meter events, with the 400 world record being her goal. Griffith-Joyner trained steadily leading up to the June US Olympic trials, but unfortunately ruptured her achilles tendon a month before the games, ending her hopes of becoming a triple world record holder. It has been speculated that Flo-Jo was, in fact, poised to make a run at the record at the trials based on practice times that put her in the 47.6-47.8 range. The world record was, and currently stands at 47.60.

Among the things she did away from the track was design the basketball uniforms for the Indiana Pacers in 1989.

Death

On September 21, 1998, Griffith-Joyner died in her sleep at the age of 38. The unexpected death was investigated by the sheriff-coroner's office, which announced on October 22 that the cause of death was suffocation during a severe epileptic seizure. She was also found to have had a cavernous angioma, a congenital brain abnormality that made Joyner subject to seizures. According to a family attorney, she had suffered a grand mal seizure in 1990, and had also been treated for seizures in 1993 and 1994.

Controversy

Aside from whether her 1988 Olympic trial world record was wind-aided, Griffith-Joyner was dogged by rumors of drug use.

In 1988, Joaquim Cruz, Brazilian gold medalist in the 800 meters at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics claimed that Griffith-Joyner's times could only have been the result of using steroids or other performance-enhancing drugs, that her physique had changed dramatically in 1988 (showing marked gains in muscle mass and definition), and that her performance had improved dramatically over a short period of time. Before the 1988 season, Griffith Joyner's best 100 meter time was 10.96 seconds. In 1988 she improved that by 0.47 seconds (or 0.35 sec for the non-wind aided time). Similarly, her pre-1988 best at 200 meters was 21.96. In 1988 she improved that by 0.62 seconds to 21.34, another time which has not been approached. Griffith-Joyner attributed the change in her physique to new health programs.

She retired from competitive track and field after her 1988 Olympic triumph. Griffith-Joyner was tested during competition and did not fail any drug tests. Track athletes commonly retired in their late 20s, and her husband stated that Griffith-Joyner was never interested in being a career sprinter, found the early nights and no-junk-food diet restrictive, and wanted to start a family as well as pursue interests in fashion design and crafts. However, it has been argued that the introduction of random drug testings, in 1989, may have accelerated the retirement of Florence Griffith-Joyner.

Joyner's supporters claimed that the autopsy cleared her of allegations that she used performance-enhancing drugs. The coroner noted that the autopsy records showed that she did not die from drugs or banned substances. Her husband had requested that Joyner's body specifically be tested for steroids, but was informed that there was not enough urine in her bladder and that the test could not accurately be performed on other biological samples.

Cultural references

Griffith-Joyner is mentioned in the rap song "Baby Got Back" by Sir Mix-a-Lot. "You can have them bimbos, I keep my women like FloJo"

Ludacris included her in the rap song "Number One Spot" "Stay on the track, hit the ground running like FloJo."

DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince pay homage to Joyner in the rap song Numero Uno "Fast like Flo Jo crazy like Cujo"

Hi-Tek makes reference to Griffith-Joyner in his collaboration with The Blast on the album Train of Thought. "It's Hi-Tek (body), on the track like Flo-Jo, bet you ain't know I had flow though."

Flo-Jo is mentioned in an episode of ''Family Guy''. Peter is being stalked by Death and attempts to run away. Death responds by saying "I caught Flo Jo, you don't think I can catch you?"

Del the Funkee Homosapien mentions Griffith Joyner in his debut album ''I Wish My Brother George Was Here'' by rapping "might sound odd to the average Joe Schmoe, the new school passed ya like Flo Jo"

In an episode of "The Nanny," Fran Drescher's character confesses that she embellished about her accomplishments in life in a letter to a pen-pal by claiming to be the fastest woman alive; it then segues into a fantasy scene where Fran is standing in the gold-medal position on an Olympic pedestal, and she turns to Flo-Jo and remarks, "Oh, cheer up, Flo. Silver goes with everything!"

Flo-Jo appeared on the Tom Bergeron version of ''Hollywood Squares''. The first episode of her week actually aired on September 21, 1998, the day she died. Center square Whoopi Goldberg introduced the week's episodes with a prerecorded message stating that the episode was taped prior to Flo-Jo's death and that the entire week of episodes were dedicated in her memory.

British rock band Queen references Flo-Jo in their 1989 song "Rain Must Fall".

In the first episode of ''Gilmore Girls'' Lorelai says to Rory "You're going to have to turn into frickin' Flo-Jo to get away from me."

In the first episode of ''Veronica Mars'' Wallace says to Veronica "Hey, FloJo, slow your ass down."

In Season 3 Episode 13 of ''Everybody Hates Chris'' FloJo is mentioned when young Chris is trying to chase a girl and narrator Chris says "there was catch a girl kiss a girl... she ran faster than FloJo."

In the ''Mystery Science Theater 3000'' Episode "Werewolf" the riff "That'll teach me to have sex with Flo-Jo" is made when one of the main characters is shown with large scratches on his back.

In 1997, Flo-Jo appeared as herself in the Season 3 Episode 13 of ''Pacific Blue''.

Polish reggae band Vavamuffin references Flo-Jo in their 2007 song "Recharge".

2011 - The Black Eyed Peas song "Just Can't Get Enough " has a reference "Honey got me runnin like I'm Flo Jo".

References

Florence Griffith Joyner also appeared in an episode of 227 starring Marla Gibbs.

External links

Official website

USATF profile

Florence Griffith Joyner at Find-A-Grave

Florence Griffith Joyner is breaking 100m World Record. Video

Florence Griffith Joyner is breaking 200m World Record. Video

EPSN OTL: Dream Chaser - E-Ticket

Evelyn Ashford|title=Women's 100 m world record holder|years=July 16, 1988 – present |after=Incumbent}} Marita Koch|title=Women's 200 m world record holder|years=September 29, 1988 – present |after=Incumbent}} Jackie Joyner-Kersee|after= Ana Fidelia Quirot|years=1988}} Silke Möller|title=Women's 200 m best year performance|years=1988|after= Dawn Sowell}}

Category:1959 births Category:1998 deaths Category:American track and field athletes Category:American sprinters Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 1984 Summer Olympics Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 1988 Summer Olympics Category:California State University, Northridge alumni Category:Deaths from epilepsy Category:James E. Sullivan Award recipients Category:Olympic track and field athletes of the United States Category:Olympic gold medalists for the United States Category:Olympic silver medalists for the United States Category:UCLA Bruins track and field athletes Category:World record holders in athletics (track and field) Category:Deaths from asphyxiation Category:Olympic medalists in athletics (track and field)

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name	Wallace Spearmon
nationality
sport	Running
event	100 meters, 200 meters
birth date	December 24, 1984
birth place	Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
residence	College Station, Texas, U.S.
height
weight
medaltemplates	}}

}} Wallace Spearmon, Jr., (born December 24, 1984 in Chicago, Illinois, USA) is a sprint athlete, who specializes in the 200 meters. He is a two-time NCAA outdoor champion in the 200 m and won the silver medal in the event at the 2005 World Championships in Athletics. He has a personal best of 19.65 seconds for the distance, making him the fifth fastest runner of all-time and he also holds the indoor American record.

He has won the bronze medal twice at the World Championships in Athletics in 2007 and 2009. He also finished third at the 2008 Summer Olympics, but was later disqualified for stepping out of his lane.

Career

Spearmon is a graduate of Fayetteville High School and attended the University of Arkansas, where he competed collegiately for two seasons before turning pro. While at Arkansas, he won the 200 meters NCAA Outdoor title in 2004 and 2005 as well as the NCAA Indoor 200 m title in 2005. In August 2005, he won the silver medal in the 200 m at the 2005 World Championships and in August 2007, he won the bronze medal at the 2007 World Championships. Spearmon won the 200 m at the USA outdoor athletics championships in 2006 and finished second in 2007. At the 2009 World Championships in Berlin he won another bronze. He ran a world best time of 31.88 for the 300 m indoors in February 2006.

His personal best in the 200 m is 19.65 seconds. This time (achieved in Daegu, Korea) made him the third fastest man over the distance at that point. He is currently ranked as the fifth fastest runner ever. Only world record holder Usain Bolt (19.19), Michael Johnson (19.32), his training partner Tyson Gay (19.58), and Xavier Carter (19.63) have run faster. Despite the fact that he normally runs a "slower" first half of his 200 m races and goes on to pass people down the stretch, his 100 meters personal best is 9.96 s. He set that mark running in Shanghai on September 28, 2007, beating 100 m world champion Tyson Gay.

Spearmon initially finished in the bronze medal position in the 200 m in the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, but was disqualified for stepping out of his lane. The second place finisher, Churandy Martina of the Netherlands Antilles, was also disqualified, giving Americans Shawn Crawford and Walter Dix the silver and bronze medals, respectively.

He posted a quick time of 19.98 seconds in the 200 m in Kingston, Jamaica in April 2010, finishing behind Usain Bolt. He reached the 2010 IAAF Diamond League 200 m final at the Weltklasse Zurich meeting, and (in the absence of points leader Walter Dix) he won the first Diamond Race Trophy with a meeting record of 19.79 seconds. Following the Diamond League win, he ran 19.85 seconds to win at the Rieti IAAF Grand Prix.

Personal life

Spearmon's father, Wallace Spearmon, Sr, also was a sprinter. He was the 1987 bronze medalist in the 200 meters at the Pan American Games.

He was engaged to fellow American track athlete Monica Hargrove, but is no longer.

On an April 2011 episode of MythBusters, he worked with Adam Savage and Jamie Hyneman to demonstrate the posibility of a human running on water.

Personal bests

{| class=wikitable |- !Event !Time (sec) !Venue !Date |- |60 meters || 6.70 || Fayetteville, Arkansas, United States || January 26, 2008 |- |100 meters || 9.96 || Shanghai, China || September 28, 2007 |- |200 meters || 19.65 || Daegu, South Korea || September 28, 2006 |- |200 meters (indoors) || 20.10 NR || Fayetteville, Arkansas, United States || March 11, 2005 |- |300 meters (indoors) || 31.88 WR||Fayetteville, Arkansas, United States || February 10, 2006 |- |400 meters || 45.22 || Paris, France || July 8, 2006 |}

All information taken from IAAF profile.

References

External links

USA Track & Field: Wallace Spearmon

Flotrack Interviews of Wallace Spearmon (video)

USATF Athlete of the week: January 2005, July 2005, February 2006, October 2006

Shawn Crawford|title=Men's 200 m Best Year Performance|years=2005|after= Xavier Carter}}

Category:1984 births Category:Living people Category:American sprinters Category:African American track and field athletes Category:People from Fayetteville, Arkansas Category:Fayetteville High School (Arkansas) alumni Category:Arkansas Razorbacks track and field athletes Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 2008 Summer Olympics Category:Olympic track and field athletes of the United States

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