Former 100m world record-holder Asafa Powell will line-up against the American trio of Justin Gatlin, Tyson Gay and Mike Rodgers in the men’s 100m race at the Lausanne Diamond League. The meet is set for Thursday, July 9, 2015 in Switzerland. Powell, who has the 2nd fastest time in the world this year at 9.81 seconds (+1.3mps), behind Gatlin’s 9.74 seconds (+0.9mps), is experiencing somewhat of a renaissance this season.
After going through a tumultuous few years that involved banned-substances and suspension, the 32 year-old Jamaican has resurfaced this season with a sense of purpose and confidence.
Perhaps the coaching change is starting to pay dividend for Powell. Powell is now coached by his older brother Donovan Powell, who may have finally gotten through to his younger brother. Throughout his career, Asafa has been plagued by his failure to win the individual gold medal at the Olympics and the World Championship, despite having the distinction of running the most sub-10 seconds in the 100m.
A now confident Powell isn’t hesitant to express how he feels about the competition, specifically Gatlin. When asked whether he can beat Gatlin, Powell responded:
“He is like the fifth fastest man in the world so I don’t know why you think he can’t be beaten...I have been running quite well this season and running very fast, so for tomorrow I expect to run fast just the same.” (Source: Jablogz.com)
Powell has emerged as Jamaica’s best hope of winning the 2015 world championship 100m title as the injured Usain Bolt will most likely miss his return to the Bird Nest.
In Lausanne, Powell will line-up against Tyson Gay (9.87) and Mike Rodgers (9.90) who have the 6th and 7th fastest times in the world this year.