Carl Lewis casts doubt on Usain Bolt’s chances
People have doubted Usain Bolt's chances of repeating his Beijing magic this summer in London. Now someone with nine gold medals has jumped into the fray.
Olympic legend Carl Lewis has expressed his doubts about Bolt's ability to win another gold medal in the 100-meter dash. His reasoning? It's hard to stay at the top.
Lewis spoke to the Indo Asian News Service on the matter:
"The reason it hasn't been done is because it's hard to stay at that level for a long period of time. People are always trying to beat you when you are a champion[."]
Yohan Blake, a friend and fellow countryman, beat Bolt in the Jamaican Olympic Trials in both the 100 and 200, which is considered Bolt's specialty. That also factors into Lewis' doubts:
"(Yohan) Blake has beaten Bolt two years in a row now after the World Championships in 2011 and we don't know what Bolt's head is like when he loses."
Lewis adds that the 100-meter field is very open, with worthy contenders such as Blake and Justin Gatlin poised to challenge Bolt.
[ Photos: Jamaican sprinter and gold-medal hopeful Yohan Blake ]
Lewis is the only man in Olympic history to repeat as gold medalist in the 100, but even that achievement is somewhat skewed. Lewis won the 100 as part of his epic four-gold performance in 1984 and then finished as runner-up in 1988, but he was retroactively awarded the gold medal when champion Ben Johnson tested positive for an anabolic steroid. No man has ever repeated as Olympic champion in the 200.
Bolt will try to do that this summer, but as Lewis has pointed out, he has a difficult road ahead of him.
Related video:
More Olympic coverage on the Yahoo! Sports network:
• London organizers scrambling as Summer Olympics near
• Basketball scrimmage star headed for surgery on hand
• Video: Kobe Bryant sits down to talk Team USA basketball
