Aug 15, 2009 3:00 pm US/Eastern
Bolt, Gay Cruise Into Semis Of 100M At Worlds
BERLIN (AP) ―
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Jamaica's Usain Bolt, center, and Antigua and Barbuda's Daniel Bailey, right, compete in the men's 100-meter round 2 heat 5 race of the 2009 IAAF Athletics World Championships on Aug. 15, 2009, in Berlin, Germany.
Adrian Dennis/AFP/Getty Images
Smiling and joking, Usain Bolt cruised into the semifinals of the 100 meters of the world championships.
Sprinting in earnest to test his groin, Tyson Gay did the same, setting up the prospect of a showdown in Sunday's final.
Bolt, the three-time Olympic champion from Jamaica, and Gay, the three-time world champion from the United States, proved they are in shape for the most anticipated race of the year.
Gay won his quarterfinal in 9.98 seconds, and Bolt cruised in at 10.03, finishing second in his heat.
After Asafa Powell flirted with elimination in the opening heat, he was all focus in the evening, clocking the fastest qualifying time of the quarterfinals with a run of 9.95, proving the pace of both the track at the Olympic Stadium and the quality of competition.
Just showing up, Bolt was the star of the day, bobbing and weaving his head, playing it up for the camera, and pointing to an adoring crowd. The most fun came during race.
He eased up at the halfway mark to see his training partner Daniel Bailey beside him and happily let him take the honor of winning in 10.02.
Gay had a slow start and needed to kick harder.
"My groin is pretty sore," he said.
Still, the American didn't think it would affect his speed Sunday. After limiting training over the past week, he was moving as well as ever.
"I haven't even worked on my starts yet," Gay said. "So to run that fast felt good."
Once he got going, his stride showed why the big matchup on Sunday could become so memorable. The duel between the exuberant Jamaican and the American is seen as the biggest event of the nine-day championships.
Powell redeemed himself after he eased up in his opening heat and only qualified by 0.02 seconds. The former world record holder is only competing at the worlds because the IAAF insisted that the Jamaican team could not cut him because he did not attend a mandatory training camp.
Dwain Chambers of Britain, who tested positive for the steroid THG in 2003 and served a two-year doping suspension, won his quarterfinal heat in 10.04.
Olympic champion Valeriy Borchin of Russia won the 20-kilometer walk, coming from behind to claim the first gold medal of the world championships. Hao Wang of China took silver and Eder Sanchez of Mexico was third.
The race was run in sunny conditions through the center of Berlin and ended under the famous Brandenburg Gate.
Back at the Olympic stadium, Olympic shot put champion Tomasz Majewski of Poland qualified for the final on his first attempt.
"I was able to get through the eliminations quickly and have a bit of peace ahead of the final," said Majewski, who led qualifying with a throw of 69 feet, 6 1/4 inches. "I'm very pleased."
Defending champion Reese Hoffa of the United States scraped through after failing to make the qualifying mark of 66-7 1/4, but his 66-4 1/2 was good enough to get among the top 12 to go through.
American throwers Christian Cantwell and Adam Nelson also qualified.
In the women's triple jump, two-time Olympic champion Francoise Mbango Etone pulled out of qualifying at the last moment. No reason was immediately available.
In her absence, defending champion Yargelis Savigne of Cuba, and 2001 and 2003 champion Tatyana Lebedeva easily advanced into Monday's final.
(© 2009 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
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