The World Championship 100-meter finals was recently won by defending champion Usain Bolt. He stopped the clock at 9.79 seconds while rival Justin Gatlin was right behind with a time of 9.80.
In all honesty, I expected Gatlin to win this race due to this almost perfect form throughout the year and the fact that Usain Bolt was unimpressive in the heats leading up to the finals.
I'm a Jamaican, but it would be biased of me if I had stated that Bolt deserved to win this race. Seriously, from the beginning of the World Championships, the 100-meter final was a race made for Gatlin to win, so what happened? Why did he fall by the wayside?
It all has to do with the mindset and, today, Gatlin's mindset was not on point. We all know that Bolt is struggling after the injuries he suffered, but he played it cool during his races and even during interviews when he's saying that everything is fine.
After the race today, it is clear that Bolt was fronting the whole time because his 9.79 win was not exciting compared to what we know the athlete is capable of.
Gatlin made the biggest mistake by allowing Bolt to enter his mind. His race lacked confidence and the drive of a man who knows he's the one to beat. He tried to catch up in the final meters and would have surpassed Bolt if he had gone into gear a little sooner, but it was never to be.
The pressure was too much for Gatlin, but with the 100-meter over, with him seeing how unimpressive Bolt's win over the 100-meter was, he should be in the right head space going into the 200-meter.
This is where we expect Gatlin to give Bolt a beating because the pressure on the American has lessened now. He knows now that Bolt can be beaten. As for Bolt? Well, the pressure is going to mount because he's not in perfect form and, to make matters worse, Gatlin has posted the best times over the 200-meter this season.
If you're a betting man, put your money on Gatlin taking the 200-meter crown from Bolt.
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