Bolt shows he’s ready for Rio Olympics

BEIJING – Hard as this is to believe, there were questions about Usain Bolt when the world championships first started.

Was he healthy enough? Was he fit enough? Was he – gasp! – fast enough?

Yes, yes, and a resounding yes.

The Jamaican great left the Bird’s Nest with three more gold medals and ended any suspicions about his dominance. Just in time, too, with the Olympic track competition in Rio de Janeiro starting 49 weeks from now.

All the doubts about Bolt – his fitness, and whether Justin Gatlin might be primed to beat him – only provided more fuel.

“People pretty much counted me out this season,” Bolt said. “They said, ‘He’s not going to make it. That’s it for him.’ I came out and proved you can never count Usain Bolt out. I’m a champion, and I’ll show up when it matters.”

As if there was ever a doubt.

The only thing that tripped him up was a clumsy cameraman who ran into him from behind on a two-wheel motorized vehicle. He even bounced back from that, anchoring the 4x100 relay team to gold after winning the 100 and 200 on his own.

One thing that became clear as the meet went on is that Bolt doesn’t just beat people by being faster, he gets in their heads, too.

Gatlin lost the 100 on a last-second lean that many viewed as a pressure-induced mistake. The U.S. relay team missed the handoff – and Bolt said he pretty much expected that.

“We just know the key thing is just to get the baton around. Doesn’t matter,” Bolt said. “Because the U.S. knows we always have the best team, they tend to panic. Pressure gets to them sometimes.”

Gatlin appears to be the only man with the speed to push Bolt. Beating him is another matter.

“What will it take?” Gatlin said. “It will take staying in front. That’s what it’s going to take.”

Good luck with that.

U.S. not as dominant anymore

For the world’s best sprinters, passing the baton in the 4x400 relay is about as easy as rolling out of bed in the morning.

Picking a winner in that race used to be easy, too.

Not anymore.

An awkward exchange between U.S. sprinter Allyson Felix and her teammate, Francena McCorory, played into a razor-thin loss to Jamaica at world championships Sunday. The American women fell by 0.31 seconds and settled for a second straight silver at the worlds after winning the Olympic and world championship titles five straight times.

“It’s hard, this one,” Felix said. “But it’s motivation for next year.”

Next year is the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, and from the U.S. perspective, the planning can’t start soon enough.

Yes, the United States won the most medals for the sixth straight time at the worlds, dating to 2005. But it did so with only 18. That’s seven fewer than the last worlds, 11 fewer than the London Olympics and the lowest total at the worlds since 2003, when the Americans won 16 – after four were taken away for doping.

“When you’re No. 1, it’s always a steeper pinnacle,” USA Track and Field president Stephanie Hightower said. “And staying on top is always a lot harder than when you’ve got to work your way to the top.”

The U.S. team certainly had some high notes. Exhibit A on Sunday: A come-from-behind anchor leg by LaShawn Merritt in the men’s 4x400 that closed out the nine-day meet. Though the women are on a losing streak, the men have finished first in the long relay at every worlds since 1993; a handful of those wins have since been vacated because of doping.

“It was important for us to end this right,” Merritt said. “Everyone on this team gave their best. But giving your best doesn’t always mean you’re going to end up with a gold medal.”