Olympics: Jamaicans sweep 200-meter dash

By Dialogo
August 10, 2012

LONDON – Winning the men’s 200-meter dash was easy as 1, 2, 3 for Jamaica – or more precisely, as easy as gold, silver and bronze.
Usain Bolt, Yohan Blake and Warren Weir saw their country’s flag flown high and anthem played as they were the first three runners to finish the premiere track event.
Bolt, who already claimed gold in the 100-meter dash and earned the title of “fastest man on alive,” cruised to an easy victory in 19.32 seconds, followed by Blake (19.44) and Weir (19.84).
“That was for all those people who doubted me, all the people who were talking all kinds of stuff that I wasn’t going to do it and I was going to be beaten,” Bolt said of putting his index finger to his lips at the finish.
“I was just telling them: You can stop talking now because I am a legend.” Jamaica became the first country other than the United States to sweep the men’s 200- meter dash, and Bolt became the first Olympian to claim gold in the 100- and 200-meter dashes in consecutive Olympics.
This naturally led to Bolt being compared to the sport’s all-time greats, including Jesse Owens, who won four gold medals at the Berlin Games in 1936.
“Jesse Owens, I have a lot of respect for,” Bolt, 25, told reporters. “He is a great athlete and he’s done great things for his country. He has really pushed athletes to their best.”
Everyone, however, is talking about Bolt – and why shouldn’t they? He has won seven of the past eight major individual sprint titles in the 100- and 200-meter dashes at the Olympics and world championships.
The one he didn’t win? The 100-meter final at last year’s world championships, when he was disqualified for a false start. Blake, 22, won that race and has claimed silver in both the 100- and 200-meter dashes and is hot on the heels of his countryman. Soon, it could be his turn to be on the top step of the podium.
“Definitely, he’s a legend. He motivated me a lot,” Blake told reporters. “It’s his time. It’s going to be my time soon.”