By Maggie Hendricks | Fourth-Place Medal
While the U.S. had a slow night filled with semifinals at the track and field Olympic Trials, drama happened at the Jamaican Olympic Trials. Yohan Blake upset world record holder and defending Olympic champion Usain Bolt.
[ Photos: Usain Bolt beaten at Olympic trials ]
Blake ran 100m in 9.75s, giving him his best time this year. He started fast and didn't let go of the lead. Bolt was slow out of the blocks and finished by pulling up. According to Associated Press, Bolt was distracted by someone near the start line.''I had to ignore it,'' Bolt said. ''I had trouble getting out, but I kept feeling like I could not give up.''For Blake, it was the perfect way to gain momentum heading into his first Olympics.
"Nine-point-seven-five, it's awesome," Blake said. "I won the world championship, so I've got that. Now, I'm the national champion for Jamaica, so I've got that. And now, I go into the Olympics like this."Bolt and Blake will still run the 200m, with heats starting on Saturday and the final Sunday night.
The good news about this loss is Bolt has a true challenger. Blake is the current world champion (because Bolt had a false start in the semifinal at the world championships) and is now the Jamaican champion. With the world record of 9.58 firmly in hand and few runners near his talent level, Bolt was running out of challenges. Now, Blake has two titles Bolt doesn't, and the two are set up for an exciting 100m duel in London.
