ROME (AP) — In Asafa Powell’s mind, he’s not competing against Usain Bolt. His target is simply winning any 100-meter race he enters. “I’m not here to compete against Bolt,” Powell said ahead of Thursday’s Golden Gala meet featuring the current and past world record-holders. “The finish line is my target, not Bolt or anyone else.” Bolt holds a 10-1 career edge over Powell in head-to-head meetings, with Powell’s only win in Stockholm in 2008. But with Bolt coming off a relatively slow performance of 10.04 seconds in Ostrava last week, Powell could seize an opportunity. It was the first time Bolt ran over 10 seconds in three years. “It’s simple,” Bolt said. “If you want to beat Bolt, if Bolt runs 9.79, you run 9.78. If he runs 10 flat, you run 9.9.” Since Powell set a world record of 9.74 in Rieti in 2007, Bolt has broken the mark three times, the last being 9.58 at the 2009 world championships in Berlin. Powell began this season with a 9.88 in a narrow loss to Justin Gatlin in Doha this month, then ran 10.02 in the rain in Shanghai. “At this meet, I don’t know what I’ll do,” Powell […]
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