Tweet
Usain Bolt runs 19.19secs to smash world record in 200m
(Michael Dalder/Reuters)
Even Usain Bolt can hardly believe his new world record time as he crosses the line
Rick Broadbent, Athletics Correspondent, Berlin
Another day, another miracle. Usain Bolt continued his habit of doing extraordinary things with the air of a man in search of a hammock on the porch, but this time he had to get his hands dirty.
“I thought it wouldn’t hurt to try,” he said after dismantling another world record in jaw-dropping fashion. “If Queen Elizabeth knighted me, then I would get the title Sir Usain Bolt. That would be nice.”
It was a year to the day since Bolt broke Michael Johnson’s 200 metres record in the Olympic final. He has been surfing a wave of goodwill since, smashing records and crashing cars, but if his destruction of his 100 metres record on Sunday was stunning, this appeared more of a challenge.
Before the race Bolt exuded all the tension of a beach holiday, donning a T-shirt with the slogan, “Ich bin ein Berlino”, in homage to the oversized foam mascot that has been terrorising these World Championships, and laughing. “Come and get me,” he mouthed into a camera.
function slideshowPopUp(url){pictureGalleryPopupPic(url);re turn false;}Related Links
However, for 19.19sec, he worked like never before, shaving a huge 0.11sec off the landmark he had set in the Bird’s Nest. Johnson had previewed the race by saying Bolt was tired, but lethargy has never looked so impressive. “I definitely showed people that my world records in Beijing were not a joke,” he said. “I was trying my heart out and I don’t think I’m going to be able to walk for a day.”
Bolt, 23 today, is motivated by titles, which is why his most seismic feats have come at the leading championships. In Beijing he took the greatest show-cum-corporate carve-up on earth and distilled it into a one-man circus. Here, he was the undisputed star turn. Johnson, the former fantasy figure of the 200 metres, claimed that his own dominance had a numbing effect on the public.
“If I won a race, nobody was standing up and cheering,” he said. “I couldn’t win but I could lose.” The peculiarity of Bolt is people love his dominance. No-contests have become the hottest ticket and, with Tyson Gay, the hitherto fastest man over the distance this year, withdrawing earlier in the week, the outcome was never in doubt. All that mattered was the time.
He got off to a flying start. He had passed Wallace Spearmon, his American friend, within five strides. Nobody else was involved. Alonso Edward, of Panama, was second in 19.81sec. Spearmon third, in 19.85. Two others ran below 20 seconds. Nobody cared.
Incredibly, there was a slight headwind, so with benign conditions might this have been a near mythical sub 19-seconds run? “I don’t know the limit in the 200 metres,” Bolt said. “But I don’t put limits on myself.” He prepared by sitting in his rooms playing video games. He said he wanted to celebrate by going to sleep, but he will be back in action tomorrow in the 4x100 metres relay final.
“I am ready for another world record there,” he said. “But I don’t know if my team-mates are.” The question then is where he goes afterwards. He believes man can lower the 100 metres mark to 9.4sec and, given that he said he is not in as good condition as last year, he is probably right.
The 200 metres has always been Bolt’s baby. It is the event he has worked at for years. He fancied the 100 metres, but Glen Mills, his ursine coach, told him he would only allow him to do so if he broke the Jamaican record for the 200 metres. Hence, he clocked 19.75sec in 2007, claiming Don Quarrie’s 36-year-old record, and the stage was set for sporting history.
The accolades here have been plentiful. Darvis Patton, last in the 100 metres said there were no words to describe him, but tried anyway: “It’s like he’s created a game person. He’s like a cheat code. That’s how good he is.”
It was an innocent use of a word that has blighted the sport, and Bolt was forced to reiterate that he is clean and hopes that his longevity will make people “stop asking those questions.”
He is certainly a one-off, in terms of talent, appeal and also earning potential. His feats here have taken his income to $320,000 (about £195,000) for the past four days. The love-in goes on and he has proved that he is the master at topping the untoppable. He says he is trying to stay away from the 400 metres, but it seems a matter of time before he is rebuilding perceptions about the quarter mile too.
A year ago in Beijing, he said: “Michael Johnson revolutionised the sport. I just changed it a little.” The times are changing.
Bolt again, and again! 19.19 World record in Berlin
relnews
20 August 2009 - Berlin, Germany - Just when you thought Usain Bolt could not surprise any more, he only goes and runs another World record - this time over 200m.
Bolt's winning time - 19.19* - looks more like a grandparent's year of birth than a time for the 200m, but although it may take a while to digest, those are the new World record figures.
Former 200m World record-holder Michael Johnson had said earlier in the day that he felt Bolt was too tired to improve on the record of 19.30. But then again, Bolt does not know the meaning of fatigue.
Back in 1996 when Johnson set the world record of 19.32, it was widely acknowledged as one of the toughest records on the books. Bolt bettered it in Beijing, of course, but with this latest improvement it must surely be considered one of the greatest performances of all time, along with his 9.58* in the 100m last Sunday.
When Bolt set his sprint World records in Beijing, he was clearly trying harder in the 200m compared to his easing-down exploits in his 9.69 run over 100m. But the -0.9m/s wind reading in the Beijing 200m final gave hope that, in better conditions, Bolt would be capable of improving the record in better conditions.
So with the promise of another momentous performance from Bolt - along with the highly anticipated High Jump duel between Blanka Vlasic and Ariane Freidrich - the Berlin Olympic stadium was near capacity.
And Bolt did not disappoint.
But his crack at breaking the record was almost over before it even began. Frenchman David Alerte false-started and Bolt registered a slow reaction of 0.345. Fortunately, he had another attempt to start and at the second time of asking he absolutely nailed it - 0.133, the fastest reaction of the field.
The lanky Jamaican flew around the bend and was surged into the lead as he shot into the home straight. At half way, Shawn Crawford of the USA was in a clear silver medal position.
But while Bolt maintained - and extended - his lead, Crawford was being caught by Panama's Alonso Edward and US team-mate Wallace Spearmon.
Bolt streaked ahead to stop the clock at 19.20, later rounded down to 19.19, while Edward and Spearmon succeeded in catching Crawford. Edward, who came into this year with a 20.62 PB, registered a South American Area record of 19.81 in second place and at 19 years old became the youngest ever World medallist in the men's 200m. His time is also a world age-19 best, breaking the 19.88 set by Bolt in 2006. And anyone who breaks one of Bolt's records is certainly set for a bright future.
Spearmon won his second successive World 200m bronze with a time of 19.85 - his third best ever clocking - while Crawford tightened up on the line with a time of 19.89.
It was the first time in history that four men had dipped under 19.90 in the same race and also the first time in which five men had broken 20 seconds.
Whoever said Berlin was a slow track?
Certainly not Bolt. While speaking to track-side interviewers after his lap of honour, he said: "It wasn't a good race, but it was a fast one."
Indeed it boiled down to a race between Bolt and the clock, and his winning margin of 0.62 seconds is by far the biggest in World Championships history.
Rounding out the top eight were Jamaican Steve Mullings (19.98) in fifth, Charles Clark of the USA in sixth (20.39), Azerbaijan youngster Ramil Guliyev in seventh (20.61) and Alerte in eighth with 20.68.
Bolt improved his previous 200m World record by 0.11, the same amount of time he chopped off his 100m record on Sunday. But, as was the case in Beijing, he ran tonight's race into a headwind (-0.3m/s), which again begs the question - can he go quicker in better conditions?
For his efforts here tonight, Bolt bagged $160,000 to add to his 100m winnings of $160,000 (both prize packets include the $100,000 World record bonus from TDK). That's roughly $11,123 for each second of his 100m and 200m performances combined.
Of course there will always be the speculation of what defending champion Tyson Gay could have achieved if he had accepted his place in the 200m. No doubt, he would have been Bolt's closest challenger, but even Gay himself would probably admit that 19.19 is just a little beyond what he is currently capable of.
It could prove to be beyond what any other human is capable of for years to come. Any human, that is, but the man himself - Usain Bolt.
Jon Mulkeen for the IAAF
(Michael Dalder/Reuters)
Even Usain Bolt can hardly believe his new world record time as he crosses the line
Rick Broadbent, Athletics Correspondent, Berlin
Another day, another miracle. Usain Bolt continued his habit of doing extraordinary things with the air of a man in search of a hammock on the porch, but this time he had to get his hands dirty.
“I thought it wouldn’t hurt to try,” he said after dismantling another world record in jaw-dropping fashion. “If Queen Elizabeth knighted me, then I would get the title Sir Usain Bolt. That would be nice.”
It was a year to the day since Bolt broke Michael Johnson’s 200 metres record in the Olympic final. He has been surfing a wave of goodwill since, smashing records and crashing cars, but if his destruction of his 100 metres record on Sunday was stunning, this appeared more of a challenge.
Before the race Bolt exuded all the tension of a beach holiday, donning a T-shirt with the slogan, “Ich bin ein Berlino”, in homage to the oversized foam mascot that has been terrorising these World Championships, and laughing. “Come and get me,” he mouthed into a camera.
function slideshowPopUp(url){pictureGalleryPopupPic(url);re turn false;}Related Links
However, for 19.19sec, he worked like never before, shaving a huge 0.11sec off the landmark he had set in the Bird’s Nest. Johnson had previewed the race by saying Bolt was tired, but lethargy has never looked so impressive. “I definitely showed people that my world records in Beijing were not a joke,” he said. “I was trying my heart out and I don’t think I’m going to be able to walk for a day.”
Bolt, 23 today, is motivated by titles, which is why his most seismic feats have come at the leading championships. In Beijing he took the greatest show-cum-corporate carve-up on earth and distilled it into a one-man circus. Here, he was the undisputed star turn. Johnson, the former fantasy figure of the 200 metres, claimed that his own dominance had a numbing effect on the public.
“If I won a race, nobody was standing up and cheering,” he said. “I couldn’t win but I could lose.” The peculiarity of Bolt is people love his dominance. No-contests have become the hottest ticket and, with Tyson Gay, the hitherto fastest man over the distance this year, withdrawing earlier in the week, the outcome was never in doubt. All that mattered was the time.
He got off to a flying start. He had passed Wallace Spearmon, his American friend, within five strides. Nobody else was involved. Alonso Edward, of Panama, was second in 19.81sec. Spearmon third, in 19.85. Two others ran below 20 seconds. Nobody cared.
Incredibly, there was a slight headwind, so with benign conditions might this have been a near mythical sub 19-seconds run? “I don’t know the limit in the 200 metres,” Bolt said. “But I don’t put limits on myself.” He prepared by sitting in his rooms playing video games. He said he wanted to celebrate by going to sleep, but he will be back in action tomorrow in the 4x100 metres relay final.
“I am ready for another world record there,” he said. “But I don’t know if my team-mates are.” The question then is where he goes afterwards. He believes man can lower the 100 metres mark to 9.4sec and, given that he said he is not in as good condition as last year, he is probably right.
The 200 metres has always been Bolt’s baby. It is the event he has worked at for years. He fancied the 100 metres, but Glen Mills, his ursine coach, told him he would only allow him to do so if he broke the Jamaican record for the 200 metres. Hence, he clocked 19.75sec in 2007, claiming Don Quarrie’s 36-year-old record, and the stage was set for sporting history.
The accolades here have been plentiful. Darvis Patton, last in the 100 metres said there were no words to describe him, but tried anyway: “It’s like he’s created a game person. He’s like a cheat code. That’s how good he is.”
It was an innocent use of a word that has blighted the sport, and Bolt was forced to reiterate that he is clean and hopes that his longevity will make people “stop asking those questions.”
He is certainly a one-off, in terms of talent, appeal and also earning potential. His feats here have taken his income to $320,000 (about £195,000) for the past four days. The love-in goes on and he has proved that he is the master at topping the untoppable. He says he is trying to stay away from the 400 metres, but it seems a matter of time before he is rebuilding perceptions about the quarter mile too.
A year ago in Beijing, he said: “Michael Johnson revolutionised the sport. I just changed it a little.” The times are changing.
Bolt again, and again! 19.19 World record in Berlin
Usain Bolt of Jamaica with the clock showing the new 200m World Record in the Berlin Olympic Stadium (Getty Images)
relnews
20 August 2009 - Berlin, Germany - Just when you thought Usain Bolt could not surprise any more, he only goes and runs another World record - this time over 200m.
Bolt's winning time - 19.19* - looks more like a grandparent's year of birth than a time for the 200m, but although it may take a while to digest, those are the new World record figures.
Former 200m World record-holder Michael Johnson had said earlier in the day that he felt Bolt was too tired to improve on the record of 19.30. But then again, Bolt does not know the meaning of fatigue.
Back in 1996 when Johnson set the world record of 19.32, it was widely acknowledged as one of the toughest records on the books. Bolt bettered it in Beijing, of course, but with this latest improvement it must surely be considered one of the greatest performances of all time, along with his 9.58* in the 100m last Sunday.
When Bolt set his sprint World records in Beijing, he was clearly trying harder in the 200m compared to his easing-down exploits in his 9.69 run over 100m. But the -0.9m/s wind reading in the Beijing 200m final gave hope that, in better conditions, Bolt would be capable of improving the record in better conditions.
So with the promise of another momentous performance from Bolt - along with the highly anticipated High Jump duel between Blanka Vlasic and Ariane Freidrich - the Berlin Olympic stadium was near capacity.
And Bolt did not disappoint.
But his crack at breaking the record was almost over before it even began. Frenchman David Alerte false-started and Bolt registered a slow reaction of 0.345. Fortunately, he had another attempt to start and at the second time of asking he absolutely nailed it - 0.133, the fastest reaction of the field.
The lanky Jamaican flew around the bend and was surged into the lead as he shot into the home straight. At half way, Shawn Crawford of the USA was in a clear silver medal position.
But while Bolt maintained - and extended - his lead, Crawford was being caught by Panama's Alonso Edward and US team-mate Wallace Spearmon.
Bolt streaked ahead to stop the clock at 19.20, later rounded down to 19.19, while Edward and Spearmon succeeded in catching Crawford. Edward, who came into this year with a 20.62 PB, registered a South American Area record of 19.81 in second place and at 19 years old became the youngest ever World medallist in the men's 200m. His time is also a world age-19 best, breaking the 19.88 set by Bolt in 2006. And anyone who breaks one of Bolt's records is certainly set for a bright future.
Spearmon won his second successive World 200m bronze with a time of 19.85 - his third best ever clocking - while Crawford tightened up on the line with a time of 19.89.
It was the first time in history that four men had dipped under 19.90 in the same race and also the first time in which five men had broken 20 seconds.
Whoever said Berlin was a slow track?
Certainly not Bolt. While speaking to track-side interviewers after his lap of honour, he said: "It wasn't a good race, but it was a fast one."
Indeed it boiled down to a race between Bolt and the clock, and his winning margin of 0.62 seconds is by far the biggest in World Championships history.
Rounding out the top eight were Jamaican Steve Mullings (19.98) in fifth, Charles Clark of the USA in sixth (20.39), Azerbaijan youngster Ramil Guliyev in seventh (20.61) and Alerte in eighth with 20.68.
Bolt improved his previous 200m World record by 0.11, the same amount of time he chopped off his 100m record on Sunday. But, as was the case in Beijing, he ran tonight's race into a headwind (-0.3m/s), which again begs the question - can he go quicker in better conditions?
For his efforts here tonight, Bolt bagged $160,000 to add to his 100m winnings of $160,000 (both prize packets include the $100,000 World record bonus from TDK). That's roughly $11,123 for each second of his 100m and 200m performances combined.
Of course there will always be the speculation of what defending champion Tyson Gay could have achieved if he had accepted his place in the 200m. No doubt, he would have been Bolt's closest challenger, but even Gay himself would probably admit that 19.19 is just a little beyond what he is currently capable of.
It could prove to be beyond what any other human is capable of for years to come. Any human, that is, but the man himself - Usain Bolt.
Jon Mulkeen for the IAAF