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ROME – A much anticipated clash between 100m world record Asafa Powell and rising star Tyson Gay is unlikely until the two meet at next month's World Championships, Powell said today.
"I don't think it's going to happen before Osaka," said Powell, the 24-year-old Jamaican whose 9.77 world record has stood since 2005. "I don't plan on racing much before Osaka and I haven't heard about anything being planned."
Powell returns to the track at tomorrow night's Golden Gala Kinder+Sport meet in Rome, the third stop of the six-meet IAAF Golden League series, where he'll contest the 100 meters. Powell has a season's best of 9.94 from the ExxonMobil Bislett Games one month ago. A groin injury sustained during the Jamaican championships forced Powell to sit out last week's Golden League contest in Paris, but after running a relay leg in Lausanne on Tuesday, Powell said he's ready to return.
“Lausanne was very cold, so we decided to take it easy," Powell said. "That was just a test run."
Gay, the 100 and 200 meter U.S. champion, has had an exceptional season to date, producing world-leading 9.84 and 19.62 performances to claim the U.S. titles last month. In his first outing since, he produced a dominant victory in Lausanne on Tuesday over a strong field in the 200, clocking 19.78 in very chilly conditions.
Powell said he welcomes the challenge that Gay and another rising star, Bahamian Derrick Atkins, present this season.
“It was all about Asafa Powell last year, and this year Tyson Gay is coming up, and Derrick Atkins. I think the crowd needs that kind of competition and I need that kind of competition.”
Powell's chief competition in Rome looks to be Atkins, a distant cousin and the latest member of the sub-10 second club who puts his four-meet win streak to the test at the Stadio Olimpico. The 23-year-old has a 9.95 to his credit this season, plus wins in Grand Prix events in Athens and Lausanne and at last weekend's Golden League fixture in Paris.
"This is my first year on the circuit, my first year to compete against top guys," said Adkins. "So everything is new to me this year. I’m just taking it in and learn from my experience and prepare for the World Championships in August."
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