Veteran sprinters Asafa Powell of Jamaica and Kim Collins of St. Kitts and Nevis were no match for the up and coming track star Trayvon Bromell in last week’s IAAF Indoor 60 meter championship. Bromell, a 20 year-old American sprinter won his first world title in a personal best of 6.47 seconds.
Asafa Powell was the favorite to win the title after posting 6.44 (seconds) in the preliminary and semi-final rounds. “We thought Asafa had it in the bag but you can never think that,” said Kim Collins. Powell had to play catch up the entire race and simply ran out of real estate.
Every professional sprinter knows that although the 60 meter dash is the shortest race in track and field, it requires focus, patience, and near flawless execution on the world’s biggest stage. Although young, Bromell seems to have an incredible ability to run his best at the biggest meets.
Bromell’s coming out party was last year at the World Championships in Beijing. He earned a bronze medal in the 100 meter dash against the best sprinters in the world. Bromell finished behind Usain Bolt, the greatest sprinter to set foot on the track, Justin Gatlin, currently America’s fastest 100 meter sprinter, and tied with Andre De Grasse from Canada, who defeated Bromell at NCAA Championships last year.
The question on the floor is simply: Will Trayvon Bromell show up again at the 2016 Rio Olympic Games? I’m not sure if Bromell is ready for the likes of Usain Bolt or Justin Gatlin, but the new kid in the blocks may have something to say about that.
Who do you think will medal in the 2016 Olympic 100 meter dash?
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By: Dr. Brandon Spradley, Director of Sports Management, USSA. Dr. Spradley can be reached at bspradley@ussa.edu