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LONDON -- With world and Olympic champion Justin Gatlin still sidelined with a tendon injury, his much-anticipated showdown with Asafa Powell is looking less likely this season, according to Powell’s manager Paul Doyle.
Doyle said that while he and Renaldo Nehemiah, Gatlin’s manager, remain hopeful that a race between the men who jointly hold the world record at 9.77 seconds will transpire this year, that “As the season progresses and the injury stays with him, it’s looking less likely everyday.”
Gatlin was hit by injury in late June after weather delays at the U.S. championships forced him to run three rounds in a single day; he hasn’t race since. In a best case scenario, said Doyle, the two wouldn’t cross paths any earlier than the Memorial Van Damme IAAF Golden League contest in Brussels, on August 25.
“I think Zurich [August 18] is almost out of the question at this stage,” said Doyle, adding that he and Nehemiah update each other regularly on the status of their athletes. “They’ve said a number of times that they don’t want Justin racing Asafa in his first race back. Which is understandable. These guys need to be sharp. To come back after not having raced for seven weeks and go up against your number one rival would be very difficult. Brussels isn’t completely ruled out yet. It’s possible that Justin can come back a do a race before Brussels and be ready to race Asafa there. Provided the injury is healed.”
Doyle said that he sympathize with fans’ frustrations about the much-hyped meeting not coming to pass, but doesn’t think that the delay will necessarily hurt the face-off when it does eventually transpire.
“They might get a bit frustrated with the fact that they have to keep waiting, but I think once the event does happen it’s going to have the attention that everyone wants for it. I don’t think anyone’s going to be turned off by it. They’ll still be happy to see it.”
And the sporting world will need to wait until both athletes are at their best. “When these guys race we want them both to run 9.7s, and see which one’s faster.”
In the meantime, Powell is showing exemplary form and starts tomorrow’s Norwich Union London Grand Prix as the overwhelming favorite. Undefeated in 10 competitions this year, the 23-year-old Jamaican has produced a remarkably consistent streak in his last three outings, clocking 9.85 twice and most recently 9.86 on Tuesday in Stockholm. Sub-10 performances, it seems, have become a matter of routine.
“I’ve been running 9.8s so I’m in perfect shape now,” said Powell. “This is really one of the races I picked to come out here and really run to the best of my ability. If I go out there tomorrow and I’m feeling really good, I’m just going to blow it away.”
Last year, Powell’s busy season came to a halt when he was injured in London and watched Gatlin speed to a 9.89 meet record as he lay on the track. It’s a lesson he has taken to heart.
“Last year was an unfortunate year for me. I didn’t let myself heal. I took a risk and went out there and it was a bad decision. There is a limit to where my body can go. I’m not going to push myself to please everybody. Last year I did that, I went out there to please people, and I hurt myself. I’m not making that same mistake again.”
But he also remembers his last appearance in Great Britain, when he equalled his 9.77 world record in Gateshead in early June, a performance that caught him by surprise.
“In Gateshead I didn’t really know how fast I was going. I was just going there to break ten seconds. But I did much more than that.”
Powell said that Gatlin’s absence from the circuit isn’t on his mind. “I’m just showing up at the track meets and I’m running. I focus on just what I have to do.”
Powell stopped short of promising another world record, but both he and Doyle think that it’s simply a matter of time.
“We saw in Gateshead when he ran a relatively relaxed run on what people said was a slow track,” said Doyle. “To run 9.77 he shocked us all that day. And shocked himself a little bit too. It just shows what he’s capable of. Given a fast track and good conditions, 9.6s are certainly a good possibility.”
“Every time he runs he’s gong to be going for the fastest time possible,” Doyle continued. “He’s not saving himself for anything this year. He’s just out there to win every single race. That’s really his goal. The times will come.”
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