Tyson Gay ran the fastest 100m under any conditions in history, a wind-aided effort of 9.68 seconds to win the sprint final on Sunday at the US Olympic track and field trials.
World 100m and 200m champion Gay booked his trip to the Beijing Olympics with a victory helped by a 4.1m per second tailwind that surpassed a 9.69 run by Obadele Thompson of Barbados in 1996 that had a 5m per second breeze boost.
“It means a lot to me,” Gay said. “I’m glad to know my body can go that fast. I know I can do it now. I was thrilled.”
PHOTO: EPA
While not legal for world record considerations because of the wind, Gay’s time was faster than the 9.72 world record set May 31 in New York by Jamaican Usain Bolt, which broke Jamaican Asafa Powell’s previous world mark of 9.74.
“I wasn’t disappointed,” Gay said. “I was concentrating on making the Olympic team. You could feel the wind picking up in the blocks. I’ve run enough to know when it’s a wind-aided race. It really didn’t matter to me.”
Gay left the blocks well and seized the lead at 50m, then powered to the finish to ensure his showdown with Bolt and Powell, who is back on form after a chest muscle injury, at the Beijing Bird’s Nest Stadium in August.
“I don’t think I have a lot of pressure on me even after running that time,” Gay said. “That was wind-aided. Usain Bolt beat me to set the world record. When we get together again, he’s still going to have the world record.”
Walter Dix was second in 9.80 with Darvis Patton third in 9.84 to book Beijing berths.
“It’s going to be a very exciting Olympics,” Gay said. “Usain Bolt is the world record holder. I’m running well. Asafa’s getting healthy and Walter and Darvis are running well.”
Travis Padgett missed out in fourth on 9.85, one of three sub-10-second runners who failed to reach the Olympics.
“I thought if I ran a 9.8 I would be going to Beijing,” Padgett said. “That wasn’t the case.”
London is the only confirmed meet before Beijing for Gay, whose goal is to complete a 100m-200m golden double in China as he did in last year’s world championships at Osaka. The 200m qualifying starts on Friday.
“I’m pretty sore,” Gay said. “I started cramping up during the [victory] lap as I was signing autographs. I can only celebrate for today. Tomorrow I have to work on getting my body right.”
Gay moved to third on the all-time 100m list behind Bolt and Powell with a 9.77 quarter-final run in legal wind Saturday, an American record coming after a qualifying blunder when he slowed too soon and finished fourth.
While Gay’s run was amazing, Gay’s coach Jon Drummond tried to keep his cool in the wake of history.
“That probably was a 9.77 if the wind was back to zero,” Drummond said. “That’s not what this is about. This year is about that Olympic gold medal.”
Other tickets to Beijing were booked on Sunday for medal contenders but 2004 Olympic and two-time world long jump champion Dwight Phillips did not earn one.
Trevell Quinley won the event with an 8.36m leap with 2006 US champion Brian Johnson second at 8.30, Miguel Pate third at 8.22 and Phillips fourth on 8.20.
World pole vault champion Brad Walker reached his first Olympics by placing third in 5.65m behind unheralded Derek Miles, who cleared 5.80, and 40-year-old Jeff Hartwig, second at 5.70. Russ Buller, fourth on 5.60, pulled out injured.
Bershawn Jackson, the 2005 world 400 hurdles champion, overcame a false start and early stuggles to win in 48.17 with 2007 world champion Kerron Clement second in 48.36 and 2000 Olympic champion Angelo Taylor third in 48.42.
Tiffany Ross-Williams won the 400 hurdles in 54.03 with Queen Harrison second in 54.60 and Sheena Tosta, fourth at the 2004 Olympics, third in 54.62 to edge Lashinda Demus, the 2005 world runner-up, for the last Beijing trip.
Reigning Olympic and two-time world 400m champion Jeremy Wariner won his quarter-final heat in 46.04 seconds.
Jamaican-born Sanya Richards, fourth a year ago to miss the world championships after going unbeaten for nearly two years, won her 400 heat in 51.08 seconds to lead 16 semi-finalists.
Bryan Clay, the 2004 Olympic decathlon runner-up and 2005 world champion, had a disappointing 7.39m leap in the long jump but bounced back with a 2.08m high jump and led after five events with 4,476 points, 22 ahead of Trey Hardee.
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