Racers not big enough for Blake, Bolt
André Lowe, Senior Staff Reporter, Jamaica Star
Jamaican speedsters Yohan Blake (right) and Usain Bolt look at the scoreboard during the Memorial Van Damme Diamond League meeting at the King Baudouin stadium in Brussels after Blake’s 19.26 run in the 200m, the second-fastest time in history behind Bolt’s world record 19.19.
Former 100m world champion Kim Collins believes that the current Racers Track Club team of Usain Bolt, Yohan Blake and coach Glen Mills is untenable and will develop problems in the future given both athletes’ ambitions and abilities.
Collins, who himself was once conditioned by Mills, pointed out that it has never happened before in track and field where two direct rivals share the same coach. Though he wishes both sprinters all the best for the coming season, Collins isn’t convinced the situation suits both athletes.
Blake, who capitalised on Bolt’s false start in Daegu, South Korea, last year to win the 100m world title before testing Bolt’s 19.19 200m world record with a 19.26 seconds clocking on the circuit, joined the 100m and 200m Olympic champion and world-record holder at the Glen Mills-anchored Racers Track Club, a recipe for disaster as far as Collins is concerned.
“The idea of Yohan Blake being the man to beat Usain Bolt sounds good on paper,” Collins said. “This, how-ever, poses a problem. Two male crabs cannot live in the same hole.”
“This notion will cause many problems because of the fact that both men share the same coach. This has never been done in track and field. One man will have to be the co-pilot and no one wants to be the co-pilot. We all want to win,” Collins added.
“There is no second first, but I wish both men the best of luck on their mission to be the champion at London 2012,” he said, before reflecting on his own bronze medal-winning performance in Daegu.
“I was very surprised with my performance in South Korea. This is because I thought it was time to call it quits,” said the 35-year-old.
“Nonetheless, I was extremely happy to have made it not only to the finals, but also to the top three positions in the finals.”
Collins topped off a great year for himself with a silver medal in the 100m at the Pan American Games in Guadalajara, Mexico.