GATLIN will be the new hero...

If not injured, these US Champs will show
us his real accession to the throne of the
World sprint: Justin GATLIN...
Of course, this wouldn't be a scoop, but I
believe he will certainly remind us of the
fantastic 1983 Carl LEWIS at the Indianapolis
US Champs.
I know, we all know he will have an unreal
athletic destiny, because he is potentially
the best sprinter of the World.
And I am not talking like a fan.

[blacklily]

Re: GATLIN will be the new hero...

Big Gatlin supporter, lots of potential. But I don't know re: USA champs. He hasn't run any open races outdoors. We'll have to see how the leg holds up.

[197hjsteve]

Re: GATLIN will be the new hero...

I was there ( Indy ) in '83. That was one smooooooth looking 19.75, I'll tell you that.

Re: GATLIN will be the new hero...

Gatlin's a great guy, but he's not ready. He's just blowing smoke about being ready after that injury. I'll be surprised if he makes it to either final.

[Marquis]

Re: GATLIN will be the new hero...

Gatlin will be ready and go under 20!

Re: GATLIN will be the new hero...

Definitely won't be showing anything in the 100, didn't make it to the next round. Finished 4th in his heat in 10.32.

[BillVol]

Re: GATLIN will be the new hero...

From articles in USA Today on Gatlin...

http://www.usatoday.com/sports/olympics ... rack_x.htm

...is this quote from Gatlin:

"When I came out of college, I thought I knew everything about sprinting. When I got (with Graham), I was in for a rude awakening. In college I thought sprinting had a lot to do with legs, not the upper body. I've learned that for a lot of races your shoulders and the power you exert from you shoulders, as well as your legs, have to be equal if you want to run very fast."

Could somebody who knows something about sprinting technique comment on the above quote? I thought the upper body was supposed to be relaxed when sprinting -- that the legs did most of the work.

I've been disappointed with many of Gatlin's quotes since joining Trevor Graham. All we have heard is how poorly coached he was at Tennessee under Vince Anderson. (Before somebody jumps on me, Gatlin hasn't used the word "poorly," but he's suggested as much.) Well, as I recall, Gatlin was basically undefeated while at Tennessee, won 6 NCAA titles, and was on track to be the first person to double the 100 and 200 outdoors for four years. And he never had an injury that I can remember. That's not too shabby coaching IMO. I was very pleased with Vince Anderson's coaching of Gatlin and all of the Vol sprinters and still am. Maybe Graham should take some notes from Anderson and not vice-versa!!!

Re: GATLIN will be the new hero...

he was certainly unprepared for the 100 meters today, some of the veterans were smoking.

[richardh]

Re: GATLIN will be the new hero...

So what happened in heat 1 of the 100 ? Gatlin re-injured ? healthy but not quite fit enough ? misjudging the qualifying conditions and taking things too easy ? From out of town (about 6000 miles) it's difficult to know what happened here - can anyone clarify

[Twister]

Re: GATLIN will be the new hero...

I think Gatlin ran some 400m in college. This guy seems like he could do it all if healthy.

[blacklily]

Re: GATLIN will be the new hero...

>So what happened in heat 1 of the 100 ? Gatlin
>re-injured ? healthy but not quite fit enough ?
>misjudging the qualifying conditions and taking
>things too easy ? From out of town (about 6000
>miles) it's difficult to know what happened here
>- can anyone clarify

Gatlin looked quite tentative to me, as if he's still reovering. He had a hammy strain at the Mexico City meet (which was to be his 200 season opener) in early May & hasn't raced since. Based on what I saw last night, I won't be surprised if he doesn't even make the 200 semis.

>I think Gatlin ran some 400m in college. This
>guy seems like he could do it all if healthy.

Gatlin is also a former 110 hurdler, decent long jumper too.

[dl]

Re: GATLIN will be the new hero...

Let's hope Gatlin doesn't try to change his sprinting style too much! Graham is obviously an experienced coach with tons of success, but I think sometimes sprint coaches overcoach. If you look at how Marion runs now, she's trying to run a good techinical race instead of just letting the speed come out. The two aren't mutually exclusive, sure, but it seems that lately sprinters are overanalyzing their races/technique.

Gatlin is an amazing natural sprinter. Sure, he leans forward a bit and might overstride, but the dude is plain FAST. Just let him run and he'll kick butt.

With that said, I had no good view of Gatlin (or any sprinters, for that matter) yesterday, since they ran the 100 heats on the backstretch in the opposite direction. I assume it was so they had a favorable wind, but who cares? All the top athletes easily have the Worlds "A" standard. Fans were not happy.

[blacklily]

Re: GATLIN will be the new hero...

I wasn't happy either, since we paid for good seats.

I'd say Marion's technicals have gone to pot since about 2000. Her height prevents her from usually being the first out of the blocks, but her start is become crappy. So has her transition phase, which has forced her to rely upon her top-notch acceleration to close out her races. And when pressed (e.g., 2001 World Outdoors), Marion no longer maintains her form. She needs MORE technicals, not less.

Technicals are important, because it can lead to a lot fewer injuries. Gatlin's hammy strain is directly related to his overstride. He "sits" too much in his drive phase, his arm action isn't good. I like his style, as it stands out, but he must finetune it. Otherwise, he'll have hammy pulls for the rest of his life.

Re: GATLIN will be the new hero...

10.32

[BillVol]

Gatlin DNS in 200 m

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