Sprint: This champion is a bit weird

Chapter 240 Powell breaks world record
2007 9 Month 9 Day.

Italy, Rieti, Guidobardi Stadium.

The temperature is 26℃, the air humidity is 36%, and the north wind is level 1~2.

On this cool afternoon, the IAAF Rieti Grand Prix is ​​in full swing.

Like most grand prix, the Guidobaldi Stadium, where the Rieti Grand Prix is ​​held, is also a fully open stadium with only stands on the east and west sides and can accommodate less than 5 spectator seats.

Compared with the big scene of 50,000 to 60,000 people like the World Championships, it is naturally much shabby. However, the audience at the Track and Field Grand Prix are basically senior track and field fans, so the atmosphere is not that bad.

"On Your Marks!"

Everyone's passwords sounded on the field.

Asafa Powell is wearing a yellow-based Nike sports vest today. Since the opponents around him are very different from him in terms of strength, both his external performance and inner activities are in an extremely relaxed state.

During the Osaka World Championships, although his injuries had basically recovered, due to the superposition of various external and internal factors, he failed to win the 100-meter flying contest that focused the world's attention.

When it came to the 4×100m relay final, in order to live up to the expectations and efforts of his teammates, he gave up on his mental problems and burst out from sixth place to third place, winning a relay for Jamaica. bronze medal.

It was also from that game that Asafa Powell truly realized that the once invincible self was back!

Powell is very convinced that as long as he can adjust his body and mentality, Wen Hao's world record of 9 seconds will never be able to stop his impact.

So after the Osaka World Championships, he returned to Italy, the summer training place, non-stop to prepare for another world record.

For this reason, he even gave up the Golden League held in Zurich, Switzerland on September 9, earning at least US$7 less in appearance fees.

Squatting down and stepping on the starting blocks, Asafa Powell had only one thought in his mind, and that was - to regain the 100-meter world record that originally belonged to him!
There is a breeze blowing on the field, and the temperature and humidity are also very suitable. Such conditions are most suitable for creating good results.

The finals are in an hour. In this preliminaries, you should perform at about 90% to 95% to see how your condition has been adjusted.
"Set——"

Following this command, Powell quickly assumed a squatting starting position, and his powerful muscles tightened rapidly. His whole body seemed to have turned into a loaded bullet, just waiting for the moment to pull the trigger!
"Snapped--!"

The moment the electronic starting gun sounded, Asafa Powell rushed out like a beast out of the cage. His reaction time was 0.137 seconds the fastest in the game, with full kick extension, strong knee lift, solid footsteps, and smooth rhythm.

Driven by his superb starting skills and strong explosive power, he already took the lead at the start.

10 meters, 20 meters, 30 meters.
With the continuous improvement of the center of gravity of the body, driven by the strong acceleration ability, Asafa Powell, who had already taken the lead at the start, continued to expand his advantage.

People have seen this kind of scene countless times in past games. The ability to accelerate from the start has always been Asafa Powell's winning weapon, but there are no opponents of the level of Wen Hao and Tyson Gay in this game. , so the audience present will not feel too excited about it.

Even NBC commentator Tom Hanks, who commented on the broadcast of the game, had a rather bland tone:
"Okay, the race has started, and former world record holder Asafa Powell ran at the front, just as we expected before the race."

The support acceleration session of the first 30 meters ended. As everyone expected, Asafa Powell took the lead and ran to the first position.

Because among the opponents in the same game, the strongest one is the Paris World Championships champion Kim Collins, whose personal best is "only" 9 seconds, and Kim Collins' best condition this season is only about 98 seconds. Therefore, Asafa Powell's performance at this time can be called "one of the best".

There was no pressure from strong enemies around him. Asafa Powell's mentality was very relaxed at this time, and his textbook-like running skills were fully demonstrated. His tall body of 188 centimeters was like a Hummer racing at full speed on the grassland. Like an off-road vehicle, the wild running posture perfectly interprets what violent aesthetics is!
40 meters, 50 meters, 60 meters.
The spectators in the stands on both sides of the stadium were cheering and shouting enthusiastically. The overall level of the Rieti Grand Prix was not very high, but it was definitely not low either.

And the audience present are basically senior track and field fans. Regarding Asafa Powell's performance on the field at this time, almost everyone is sure that he can run within 10 seconds with this shot!
Based on Asafa Powell's past competition analysis, even running into 9 seconds would not be surprising.

Their guess was correct, but not quite right.

Boosted by a wind speed of +1.7m/s, Asafa Powell was incredibly fast. By the time he reached the 60-meter mark, he was already at least three lengths ahead of his competitors! The running time of the first 60 meters was only 6.32 seconds, surpassing Maurice Green's fastest first 2001 meters time in history at the 60 World Championships in Edmonton - 6.33 seconds. Powell's future was extremely explosive with this shot (literally). mean)!

After 60 meters, we enter the later stage.

With his unparalleled speed, Asafa Powell was still widening the gap at this time, leaving his opponents on the field far behind, creating a no-man's land of nearly 2 meters!
The extremely powerful Asafa Powell completely controlled this game and turned it into his own show, running at high speed amidst the enthusiastic cheers of the audience.

70 meters, 80 meters, 90 meters.
While other contestants are trying their best to get a spot in the finals.

Asafa Powell, who was at the front, gradually relaxed his running posture while strolling, preparing to cross the finish line in an extremely relaxed and freehand way.

Until he reached the finish line, no one, including Asafa Powell himself, realized what was coming next.

At this moment, the entire audience laughed and turned their attention to the only timer on the field, guessing Asafa Powell's finish.

The preliminaries are definitely going to be tough. With such a big lead in the future, it is definitely no problem to break into 10 seconds, and there is a high probability that it will be within 9 seconds and 90 seconds.

9 seconds 88?

9 seconds 85?

Or run within 9 seconds 84 to refresh the top 10 meters?

The next moment, Asafa Powell's tall body flashed past the finish line, the numbers on the timer stopped beating, and the reference results were displayed.

Asafa Powell, who finished the race easily, was not even prepared to look at his reference score immediately after crossing the line, because in his opinion, if he lost water in the last 20 meters, even if he could run A good result, but certainly far from the world record.

For Asafa Powell now, as long as he does not break the world record, even running super results of 9 or 77 seconds is meaningless.

He just wanted to leave the field and rest quickly, adjust his condition quickly, face the 100-meter final in an hour, and strive to regain the world record.

But in this world, there are always some unexpected things happening.
When Asafa Powell finished crossing the line, the timer numbers stopped beating, and the reference results were frozen. All the spectators at the scene were so surprised that their mouths opened wide, and even their expressions were almost stagnant.

next moment.
"Oh oh oh oh oh--!!!"

The Guidobaldi Stadium, which only accommodated less than 5 spectators, instantly erupted into a fanatical atmosphere that seemed to be tens of thousands of people. Unbelievable exclamations roared through the sky!

"Oh my God! What the hell did I see?!"

"Impossible! Absolutely impossible! There must be something wrong with the timer!!"

"Is this true? The world record was broken so easily??!!"

After feeling this unusual reaction on the scene, Asafa Powell looked at the timer with some confusion, and then just like the audience who were surprised by him, their eyes widened, their mouths opened wide, and they were stunned. In situ.

9.74!

The number on the timer was fixed at 9.74!

Asafa Powell broke the world record of 9 seconds set by Wen Hao in the Golden League Rome!

The new world record was unexpectedly set in the 100-meter preliminaries of the Rieti Grand Prix!

(End of this chapter)