Tyson Gay Advances at IAAF World Championships
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Former Hog Tyson Gay and current Hog J-Mee Samuels have completed competition in the preliminary and quarterfinal rounds of the 100 meters at the 2007 IAAF World Championships in Osaka, Japan.
In the prelims, Gay finished second in his heat with a time of 10.19 behind Japan’s Nobuharu Asahara who clocked a 10.14.
"(The prelims) went well,” Gay said. “Words can’t describe the track. I wanted to run 10.3 but I couldn’t run that slowly. It’s the fastest track I’ve ever run on. I’m really looking forward to this evening and tomorrow."
Samuels was fourth in his heat with a time of 10.39. Jamaica’s Asafa Powell, arguably Gay’s toughest competition for the gold medal, was second in his heat with a time of 10.34. Gay and Powell automatically advanced to quarters while Samuels advanced on time.
"I did pretty well,” Samuels said. “My hamstring is sore and I have to get past that. I got out of the blocks well. The track is fast and bouncy."
In the quarterfinals, after a false start was charged to the field, Gay won his heat with a time of 10.06 and automatically advanced to the semifinals. Gay enters the semifinals with the third-fastest quarterfinal time (10.06). Powell won his heat of the quarters with a time of 10.01 and was quickly followed by Derrick Atkins of the Bahamas who clocked a 10.02.
“The false start kind of threw me off, but that’s how it goes, so I had to re-focus,” Gay said. “I think he shot the gun a little quick, but the speed is there and I just have to execute my start and I’ll be ready for tomorrow.”
Samuels was fifth in his heat with a time of 10.29 and was the first sprinter left out of the semis. He will finish the 100-meter competition as No. 17 in the world.
“I think I did pretty well,” Samuels said. “10.29 is better than before (in the prelims). My hamstring is still bothering me a little bit, but I’m making it through the rounds. There was a slight headwind but everybody else had the same thing. I came out pretty well out of the blocks and just had to finish the race.”
Results from the semifinals and finals of the 100 meters will be posted on Hogwired.com as soon as they become available. Both Gay and Samuels will begin competition as members of the 4×100-meter relay Fri., Aug. 31.
Former Hogs Alistair Cragg, Wallace Spearmon and Eric Brown will also be competing in the 2007 IAAF World Championships later in the week. Visit www.usatf.org or www.iaaf.org for more details and an updated schedule.
Highlights from the World Championships will be air on NBC and the Versus network. Visit http://www.usatf.org/events/2007/IAAFWorldOutdoorChampionships/TVSchedule.asp for a detailed schedule.
