Rio de Janeiro - Usain Bolt became the first man to win three straight Olympic 100m titles on Sunday
Published: Thu 18 Aug 2016, 11:49 AM
Last updated: Thu 18 Aug 2016, 2:00 PM
Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt admitted he will need to improve himself in order to break the world record in Thursday's 200m final at the Rio Olympics.
The seven-time Olympic champion qualified fastest in 19.78 seconds to edge out Canadian Andre de Grasse by two hundredths of a second on Wednesday, Xinhua news agency reported.
Lashawn Merritt of the US was third quickest at 19.94 seconds.
"I definitely think I can try for the world record, I definitely feel that. I need to run efficiently and get into the straight and run the perfect race," Bolt said.
"If I can run a little more efficiently on the turns. I will be hoping for lane six or seven maybe to be able to run as smooth as I can. My body felt good. It is tougher than I thought it was going to be but I am handling everything pretty well mentally and physically," he said.
Bolt looked to be cruising to an easy win in his semifinal before being pushed at the end by De Grasse.
The 29-year-old was mildly miffed at his rival, questioning the need to exert himself.
"That was really unnecessary. I don't know what he was trying to do but he is a young kid, he is great," Bolt said.
"He was supposed to slow down. I said 'What are you doing, it's a semifinal,' But I think he wanted to push me. I was a bit lazy but I got round," Bolt added.
Surprisingly, American Justin Gatlin failed to qualify for the final, finishing ninth fastest in the semifinals at 20.13.
Bolt became the first man to win three straight Olympic 100m titles on Sunday by beating Gatlin by eight hundredths of a second, with De Grasse taking bronze.
Already considered the most successful sprinter of all time, Bolt is hoping to achieve an unprecedented triple-triple here: three straight Olympic gold medals in the 100m, 200m and 4x100m relay.
Bolt looks to teach a lesson in 200 final
As much as winning his eighth Olympic gold medal, Bolt is aiming for a world record. He holds the current mark, at 19.19 seconds, but thinks a sub-19 time could be possible.
"Now, it's (about) executing right, running the corner efficiently, and coming in the straight and running the perfect race," he said.
If things go terribly wrong for him, here are some others who could be a factor:
DE GRASSE: The 21-year-old bronze medalist in the 100 meters could represent a changing of the guard in the sprint game. Big question: Did pushing Bolt for a relatively meaningless semifinal placing actually sap any strength from the champion?
LASHAWN MERRITT: It's not Bolt, but Merritt, who currently has the year's best time at 200 meters (19.74 seconds). But it's not Merritt's best race. That would be the 400, where four nights earlier, Merritt staggered across the line in third, nearly a full second off of Wayde van Niekerk's world-record pace. How much did that take out of Merritt? We shall see. He'd have to be ecstatic with any kind of medal in his "bonus race."
CHURANDY MARTINA: The 32-year-old native of Curacao runs for the Netherlands. His claim to fame was finishing second to Bolt at the 2008 Olympics but losing the medal after officials determined he stepped outside his lane. The man who received it, Shawn Crawford, didn't think it was a fair ruling and gave Martina back his silver, though the official results stayed the same.
JUSTIN GATLIN: Um, well, no. After capturing silver in the 100, the main challenger to Bolt over the past two years didn't qualify for the 200 final. He revealed he'd been dealing with an injured ankle. But he isn't checking out completely from the race. "I'll be out there rubbing his shoulders, with a towel on him, like, 'All right Rocky, get yourself ready,'" Gatlin said, doing his best impression of Burgess Meredith's trainer character in the "Rocky" movies.
THE REST: None of the following four - Christophe Lemaitre, Alonso Edward, Adam Gemili or Ramil Guliyev - have cracked 20 seconds this year. If they get caught up in Bolt's tailwind, they might.
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