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Bolt desperate for more success
Page last updated: 9th Dec 2008 - 09:03 AM
Written by Charlotte Cook
You might have thought that setting the world records for both the 100m and 200m events would be enough to keep any athlete happy for a significant amount of time. However, some individuals will never be content no matter how much success comes their way.
One such individual is Usain Bolt, the twenty-two year old sprinter from Jamaica, who currently holds the two world records.
He was a star at the Olympic Games in Beijing earlier this year, running the 100m event in just 9.69 seconds. Bolt also successfully led the Jamaican 4x100m sprint relay team to victory in the Olympic event. In addition he broke the record set by Michael Johnson for the 200m event (19.32 seconds) in the final, with a new record time of 19.30 seconds.
Bolt now believes that he will be able to run 100m in just 9.52 seconds but, before fulfilling this ambition, he must “make progress in different areas”. The one area highlighted by the athlete as being relatively weak at the moment is the start of the race.
If the athlete continues to improve, his coach, Glenn Mills, believes that he may be able to run 200m in well under 19 seconds, as long as the conditions are similar to those seen in Beijing.
Bolt’s aims may seem ambitious to many people but recently, scientists found that male sprinters are, theoretically at least, physically able to run 100m in 9.48 seconds. Furthermore, the scientists, who had performed research at Stanford University, believe that top athletes could run 200m in 18.63 seconds.
Radcliffe reveals marathon excitement
Page last updated: 8th Dec 2008 - 08:54 AM
Written by Charlotte Cook
Paula Radcliffe has spoken of her excitement at the prospect of returning to the London Marathon next year. She has missed the last three London Marathons as a result of persistent injuries but has previously experienced great success on the course.
After a victory in the event in 2002, Radcliffe set the world record in London in 2003 and also won the race in 2005. She is now determined to make up for her absences during 2008, 2007, and 2006, by putting on an impressive performance on home turf.
She will compete against tough competition, with Irina Mikitenko, the defending champion, expected to be in good form. Mikitenko was not present at the Olympic Games, held earlier this year in Beijing, where Radcliffe failed to impress in the marathon event and finished in a disappointing 23rd position.
However, Mikitenko won the Berlin Marathon earlier this year and became the World Marathon Majors champion just last month. Constantina Dita will also provide tough competition for Radcliffe. Dita has never won the event despite having participated a total of eight times. However, she won the gold medal in the marathon event at the recent Olympic Games.
Radcliffe made a successful comeback from physical injury and similarly damaging emotional knocks when she won the New York Marathon just last month and she has since won the Great South Run in Portsmouth as well.
The success in New York has left the British athlete “hungry to win back” her London Marathon title and the quality of the competitors has failed to worry her in the slightest. Indeed, Radcliffe is simply excited about the “top-class fields and great crowds” which are guaranteed at the London event.
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