In his last competitive race, Asafa Powell was leading the men’s 100 metres Olympic final about the 30-metre mark. By about 40 metres he had pulled up in pain, another chance for gold gone. Powell’s next competitive run will be in Stawell on Saturday. From the most-watched sporting event in the world in London’s Olympic Stadium, to Victoria’s Wimmera. He smiles at the apparent absurdity of it. But for an athlete who has enjoyed success in Australia – he won Commonwealth gold here in 2006 – it was not a difficult sell to return to Victoria. Stawell has long had a strange capacity to draw the world’s better athletes – former world champion Kim Collins raced there, and last year Powell’s Jamaican teammate Michael Frater also ran – but Powell is another level again. He held the world record for the 100 for nearly three years – running 9.77 seconds three times before cutting that to 9.74 (it was later bettered by Usain Bolt). He has a best of 9.72 and has run under 10 seconds for the 100 more than any other man (88 times). He is adamant that time and Bolt have not irretrievably passed him by. ”No, […]
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