Bolt makes bow as Farah, Kiprotich eye new records
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JAMAICAN superstar Usain Bolt makes his bow in the 100-meter heats on the opening day of the world championships today, when Briton Mo Farah will bid for an unprecedented six consecutive global track distance titles in the 10,000.
Bolt’s appearance at Beijing’s iconic Bird’s Nest Stadium comes seven years after he stormed to treble gold at the 2008 Olympic Games in the Chinese capital, a period during which he has dominated sprinting.
“Beijing was where it all started for me at the Olympic Games in 2008,” the towering 29-year-old said. “I have great memories of this city and the stadium. It’s great to be back here.”
After missing six weeks of competitive sprinting because of an early-season injury, Bolt rebounded with back-to-back winning times of 9.87 seconds at last month’s London Diamond League meet.
“I’m in great form and I’m ready to go,” he said.
Farah, who came through the youth and junior ranks alongside Bolt, has made the headlines for all the wrong reasons in recent months, with his American coach Alberto Salazar accused of violating several anti-doping rules.
Salazar has strenuously denied all the accusations against him and Farah, who was not accused of any wrongdoing, has vowed to stick by his coach unless any allegations are proven.
Since losing to Ibrahim Jeilan at the Daegu worlds in 2011, Farah has won five global track distance titles in a row. He rebounded to win the 5,000 in Daegu, and followed up with a 5,000-10,000 double at both the 2012 London Olympics and the 2013 worlds in Moscow.
Should Farah triumph in the 10,000 in Beijing, he will have strung together an unprecedented six consecutive global track distance titles (with a chance to make it seven in the 5,000).
One notable absentee from today’s action, featuring three medal events, will be New Zealand’s four-time world champion Valerie Adams, who misses the women’s shot put after failing to regain form following double shoulder-and-elbow surgery.
The opening event of the day will be the men’s marathon, which kicks off early in the morning in a bid to better avoid the hot, often smoggy conditions that envelop Beijing.
All eyes will be on Stephen Kiprotich as the Ugandan goes after an unprecedented third consecutive global title after winning golds at the London Games and the Moscow worlds.
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