Day 2 of the Olympics--evening session...
4:11 AM--Welcome to our coverage of day 2 the evening session of Olympic track & field. The men's 100 meters is the climactic event of the night, with the highly anticipated battle between Asafa Powell & Usain Bolt of Jamaica, and Tyson Gay of the USA.
Other finals tonight include the women's shot, and the conclusion of the heptathlon. Semis include the men's 400 hurdles and women's 800.
Here's a quote from discus thrower Ian Waltz, who did not throw well this morning, courtesy of USA Track & Field:
"I just didn't throw really good at all. I've been fighting some injuries. I didn't have any rhythm. It kind of stinks, I've had a really good year. It's unfortunate it didn't work out."
Looking forward to hearing from some of our sources on what Ian's injuries were going into the meet.
4:32 am--You can see why Maria Mutola of Mozambique is a legend. The former Eugene resident was impressive in finishing second in heat 1 of the women's 800 semis, running 1:58.61, behind Svetlana Klyuka of Russia's 1:58.31, content to let the field do the work. Mutola weaved her way through with 250 to go, and got herself in good position with 150.
4:55 am--They're giving out the medals for the women's 10000. Very happy for Shalane Flanagan! We're about 5 minutes from the start of the men's 100 semis. Results of the women's 800 semis are up--no real surprises.
5:06 am--Look out! Bolt impressive in winning in 9.85, shutting it down at 90m! Walter Dix and Marc Burns also break 10 seconds. Gay & Powell are in the other heat. Live results are up at http://www.nbcolympics.com/trackandfield/.
5:16 am--Tyson Gay's not going to make the finals! Gay was aced out for the last spot by Darvis "Doc" Patton 10.03 to 10.o5!
5:25 am--The finals of the men's 100 go off in two hours. For those of you in Seattle with Comcast, get over to CBC (channel 99) to watch it! Donovan Bailey just said on CBC that he thinks Bolt will run in the 9.6 range. FYI, Bailey holds the Olympic record at 9.84 set in 1996.
6:15 am--Meanwhile in the long jump, the Americans are in danger of not advancing anyone to the finals. Panama's world champ Irving Saladino is in trouble with two fouls so far. In the women's 100 meters, no real surprises--all the usual suspects got through ok.
6:20 am--Parker Morse from the IAAF reports that the women's shot put is underway, and world champ Valerie Vili of New Zealand just threw 20.56 (67-5 1/2). Angelo Taylor and Bershawn Jackson just went 1-2 in the semis of the 400 hurdles. Irving Saladino got a mark of 8.01 (26-3 1/2) and will make the finals.
Check out Parker's blog at iaaf.org--it's very informative!
6:50 am--The women's heptathlon 800 is underway. Hyleas Fountain will run in the fifth and final heat, as she is currently in second at 5733 points...problem is that she's going to have to run close to her PR 2:16.79 to have a chance to hang on to her silver position. The heptathlon web site http://www.ergorej.net/beijing projects her to finish fifth overall with a final score of 6454.
7:22 am--It's Dobrynska 6733, Blonska 6700, Fountain 6619 for the medals. Fountain runs a PR 2:15.45. Meanwhile, we're getting ready for the men's 100!
7:31 am--9.69 for Bolt (left/file photo courtesy trackandfieldphoto.com)! And he was celebrating 10 meters before the finish!
Richard Thompson finished second in 9.89, with Walter Dix third in 9.91, both personal bests. Keep in mind both Thompson and Dix have been running a long collegiate season, at LSU and Florida State. Asafa Powell was fifth. Six guys under 10 seconds!
In the media tribune, Parker Morse writes that "The press are already comparing this to Michael Johnson's 19.32 200m in Atlanta".
That's how dominant he was tonight!
7:40 am--Bolt is posing in front of the clock for photographers by the finish line, as the board says NEW WR BOLT 9.69.
We're signing off...see you for coverage of the men's marathon, starting at 4:30 pm in Seattle.
8:05 am--So we lied...we're not signing off--yet...
In reviewing the CBC video, we noticed that in the first few steps, Bolt actually stubbed his toe on the track, and had what most sprint coaches consider a sub-par first 10 meters!
As Bolt began his victory lap, we noticed videographer Matt Taylor in the stands shooting--he's the guy putting together the "Chasing Bolt" series at pumarunning.com--make sure you check it out!
Other finals tonight include the women's shot, and the conclusion of the heptathlon. Semis include the men's 400 hurdles and women's 800.
Here's a quote from discus thrower Ian Waltz, who did not throw well this morning, courtesy of USA Track & Field:
"I just didn't throw really good at all. I've been fighting some injuries. I didn't have any rhythm. It kind of stinks, I've had a really good year. It's unfortunate it didn't work out."
Looking forward to hearing from some of our sources on what Ian's injuries were going into the meet.
4:32 am--You can see why Maria Mutola of Mozambique is a legend. The former Eugene resident was impressive in finishing second in heat 1 of the women's 800 semis, running 1:58.61, behind Svetlana Klyuka of Russia's 1:58.31, content to let the field do the work. Mutola weaved her way through with 250 to go, and got herself in good position with 150.
4:55 am--They're giving out the medals for the women's 10000. Very happy for Shalane Flanagan! We're about 5 minutes from the start of the men's 100 semis. Results of the women's 800 semis are up--no real surprises.
5:06 am--Look out! Bolt impressive in winning in 9.85, shutting it down at 90m! Walter Dix and Marc Burns also break 10 seconds. Gay & Powell are in the other heat. Live results are up at http://www.nbcolympics.com/trackandfield/.
5:16 am--Tyson Gay's not going to make the finals! Gay was aced out for the last spot by Darvis "Doc" Patton 10.03 to 10.o5!
5:25 am--The finals of the men's 100 go off in two hours. For those of you in Seattle with Comcast, get over to CBC (channel 99) to watch it! Donovan Bailey just said on CBC that he thinks Bolt will run in the 9.6 range. FYI, Bailey holds the Olympic record at 9.84 set in 1996.
6:15 am--Meanwhile in the long jump, the Americans are in danger of not advancing anyone to the finals. Panama's world champ Irving Saladino is in trouble with two fouls so far. In the women's 100 meters, no real surprises--all the usual suspects got through ok.
6:20 am--Parker Morse from the IAAF reports that the women's shot put is underway, and world champ Valerie Vili of New Zealand just threw 20.56 (67-5 1/2). Angelo Taylor and Bershawn Jackson just went 1-2 in the semis of the 400 hurdles. Irving Saladino got a mark of 8.01 (26-3 1/2) and will make the finals.
Check out Parker's blog at iaaf.org--it's very informative!
6:50 am--The women's heptathlon 800 is underway. Hyleas Fountain will run in the fifth and final heat, as she is currently in second at 5733 points...problem is that she's going to have to run close to her PR 2:16.79 to have a chance to hang on to her silver position. The heptathlon web site http://www.ergorej.net/beijing projects her to finish fifth overall with a final score of 6454.
7:22 am--It's Dobrynska 6733, Blonska 6700, Fountain 6619 for the medals. Fountain runs a PR 2:15.45. Meanwhile, we're getting ready for the men's 100!
7:31 am--9.69 for Bolt (left/file photo courtesy trackandfieldphoto.com)! And he was celebrating 10 meters before the finish!Richard Thompson finished second in 9.89, with Walter Dix third in 9.91, both personal bests. Keep in mind both Thompson and Dix have been running a long collegiate season, at LSU and Florida State. Asafa Powell was fifth. Six guys under 10 seconds!
In the media tribune, Parker Morse writes that "The press are already comparing this to Michael Johnson's 19.32 200m in Atlanta".
That's how dominant he was tonight!
7:40 am--Bolt is posing in front of the clock for photographers by the finish line, as the board says NEW WR BOLT 9.69.
We're signing off...see you for coverage of the men's marathon, starting at 4:30 pm in Seattle.
8:05 am--So we lied...we're not signing off--yet...
In reviewing the CBC video, we noticed that in the first few steps, Bolt actually stubbed his toe on the track, and had what most sprint coaches consider a sub-par first 10 meters!
As Bolt began his victory lap, we noticed videographer Matt Taylor in the stands shooting--he's the guy putting together the "Chasing Bolt" series at pumarunning.com--make sure you check it out!
Comments