By Josh Hurlebaus
This preview is slightly different than the other ones. Whereas in the first two previews there was a wide enough range of talent that there were quite a few legitimate medal contenders, the 200 is essentially a race for Gold and a race for bronze. With two favorite Jamaicans racing for gold while one American and one Frenchmen race for bronze, this is going to be a 200 to remember! Let’s start out with a tale of the tape for the contenders for Gold!
| Yohan Blake
5’ 11” 176lbs 22 19.26 N/A |
HeightWeight
Age PR Top Gear Lap Speed |
Usain Bolt
6’ 5” 210lbs 25 19.19 1:46.5 |
| The Jamaican national champion in the 100 and the 200, he is the first person to beat Bolt twice in a row since the breakout season of 2008. Yohan has run faster at his age in the 200 than Bolt, and given the top speed shown in the 100 I think we’re going to see Blake take a shot at the 200 WR. I’ve yet to see Blake not take a race seriously. He is determined as hell and is my favorite to win! | If you think Bolt isn’t taking the threat of Blake seriously, think again. There is a reason Bolt has flown to Germany to undergo therapy from the world famous Dr. Hans-Wilhelm Muller-Wohlfahrt and it’s because he is going to leave nothing to chance. Bolt has a tendency to blow up when the pressure is high (and having your world record taken and sponsors dropping you is a pretty big motivating factor) so I expect nothing but the best from Bolt. |
The Battle for the Bronze!
|
Wallace Spearmon
PR- 19.65 Advantages– Experience, better tattoos, hangs out with Doc Patton. At the beginning of the season, Spearmon was my guy to beat. He was looking incredible during his spring races. Poised. In control. And most importantly for him: fast. Now saying that Spearmon isn’t traditionally fast is ridiculous, but when compared to Bolt and Blake, his 100m leaves a lot to be desired. Having a PR of 19.65 shows that he knows how to move in the deuce, and given how his acceleration looked earlier this year I made a prediction that he would end up going 19.4x. I am sticking with that prediction, even though he was slightly less than reassuring at the Olympic trials. Wallace isn’t just the United States best shot at medaling in the 200, he is the only shot. |
Christophe Lemaitre
PR- 19.80
Advantages- Essentially running at home, has perfected the lean at the line (complete with scary face), apparently nobody has told him that awkward white guys shouldn’t be this fast. You might think that I’m crazy for including Lemaitre in the conversation for medals in the 200, but chew on this little nugget. He has run faster at his age than both Bolt AND Blake. This kid is the real deal and somehow always finds a way to be in contention. His PR is a very respectable 19.80, but I’m predicting 19.7’s or even lower. He has a faster 100m than Wallace Spearmon and has shown remarkable speed endurance in his recent races. If he can handle the pressure of the Olympics, especially since they are right next door to home, I see him as a very legitimate medal contender. |
About Josh:
Josh Hurlebaus is the sprints coach at Carroll University and recently coached LJ Hyland to an All-America finish and school record (dropping a full second off of his PR) in his inaugural year in charge of the Carroll sprinters. Josh has been an Elitetrack member since 2005 and is actively involved in many sprint discussions. He also has consulted various All-American sprinters from other schools such as Zach Lee and Scott Thomas.
A former Carroll athlete himself, Josh was a 4x All-American and continued to set personal records post-collegiately. He was a 1x USATF Indoor Qualifier. Below are his personal bests.
60m– 6.73
100m-10.38
200m– 20.97 (21.47indoor)
Find his blog at yourunlikecrap.com
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