ASAFA BACK ON TOP?

                                                                                                                                                           That's the question following his scintilating performance at the Lausanne Diamond League meet in Switzerland. Powell's 9.78 is the fastest time in the event this year and signals the former world record holder's surprising return to form. Not since 2008 have we seen such form and confidence oozing from Asafa. Let's have another look:

The race was billed as a showdown between Powell and France's Christophe Lemaitre, a showdown which did NOT materialize. In fairness to the Frenchman he suffered a devastating start and had to dig deep to land third, equaling his persoanl best of 9.95, so no embarrassment there.
However, whatever Lemaitre lacked on that day Powell had it in abundance, his start was spot on. In fact it was immaculate. Powell led from the jump and was never really challenged, he did well to maintain the speed straight to the line. My only pet peeve is he continues to look over to his opponents right before crossing the line. He did this in Kingston as well, where he edged Yohan Blake for the win. Powell isn't the only athlete guilty of this practice. My personal feeling is if they refrain from doing so, the end result could be a tenth of a second faster, which may not matter now but could be a deciding factor when they get to Daegu...just my thought.  


High commendations go to Jamaica's Michael Frater who clocked an astounding 9.88  to grab second. His effort was a personal best by the diminutive Frater, his second PB of the season. Frater is obviously in the form of his life, too bad he missed out on an automatic qualification at last weekend's trials in Jamaica. judging from this performance he just might have a shot of making the relay team.

I think we can conclude it was yet another splendid race in the Diamond League series. If anything it confirms the men's 100m final in Daegu is NOT a foregone conclusion.  Not to spoil the party here but I cannot end without stressing that one off races in the league does not necessarily translate to a gold medal...a lesson Powell knows only too well. My advice to all athletes is to put in the training, get your fitness level up to maximum so come Daegu you can actually manage the rounds.

This display just makes it all the more intense and exciting for track fans around the world.