02 July,2011 07:04 AM IST | | AFP
Asafa Powell has thrown down the gauntlet to world sprinting rivals including Jamaican compatriot Usain Bolt by running the fastest 100m of the season so far.
Powell clocked a rapid 9.78 seconds at Thursday's Diamond League meeting here, dipping under 9.8sec for the blue ribbon event for the eighth time in his career.
Asafa Powell
Only double sprint world and Olympic champion Bolt (five times with a world record best of 9.58sec) and American Tyson Gay (five times with a best of 9.69sec) have run faster. "It was a fantastic run, a bit cold out there, but I managed to push through," the 28-year-old Powell said.
"I'm starting to draw the benefits of a different training programme that I was able to complete last winter without being disturbed by injuries. We've been practising that for a very long time now. I definitely can't wait to face Usain."
