Gay tumbles in 200 meters
Posted on Sunday, July 6, 2008
EUGENE, Ore. — Tyson Gay accelerated through the first curve. Then, he started flying.
Not in the figurative sense, but in an all-too-real way — a shocking sprawl to the ground that cost America’s best sprinter an Olympic spot in the 200 meters and made him look like less than a sure thing, healthwise at least, with the Beijing Games five weeks away.
Gay, a former Arkansas Razorback, suffered what his manager called a severe cramp in his left hamstring at the U. S. Olympic Track and Field Trials on Saturday and had to be carted off the track. He was at his hotel later, being treated with ice.
“It was just one of those things,” Gay said in a statement released through USA Track and Field. “I’m very disappoined.” Gay already has qualified for the Olympics in the 100, but his chances at doubling are gone. Now, the nervous wait begins to see if it was, indeed, just a cramp, and how that affects his training over the next month.
“There is no apparent damage otherwise, except for some road rash from the fall,” said Gay’s manager, Mark Wetmore. “He said he felt a little tightness before the race.” Wetmore said Gay was getting a magnetic resonance imaging as a precaution.
“When he wakes up tomorrow, he’ll know,” said former decathlete Dan O’Brien, who famously missed the Olympics 16 years ago. “He’ll be able to stretch it out, he’ll be able to move it. If he can’t sit on the toilet tomorrow, he’s got problems.” Had this been gymnastics, or a number of other sports, an injury at trials wouldn’t have ended Gay’s chance to make the Olympics in that specific event. But USA Track and Field plays it straight — top three finishers at trials make the Olympics, no exceptions.
It’s a black-and-white policy that most athletes accept, though it could end up costing the American team as much as Gay in Beijing. Gay is the defending world champion in the 100 and 200.
“I don’t know any other way to do it, but it’s tough,” said Wallace Spearmon, a Fayetteville native and former Razorbacks teammate of Gay who now is the favorite in today’s finals. “Either you’re ready on this day or not. You can be the best athlete coming into it, and you could be sitting at home watching it from the house.” It was a stunning setback for the 25-year-old Gay, who last week set the American record in the 100 at 9. 77 seconds. In the final, he ran 9. 68, the fastest time ever recorded, but not a world record because the tailwind was too strong.
“It’s scary. Especially in a round,” said 200 women’s favorite Allyson Felix. “It kind of shakes up your nerves.” Damein White, running in the lane next to Gay, said he saw Gay pull up and saw something fly his way. It was the white sticker with Gay’s number on it.
“I tried to keep going off the curve,” White said. “It kind of threw me off. He just pulled something. He’ll be right back.” More urgently, however, are the Olympics. Qualifying for the 100 starts Aug. 15, and Gay was one of the favorites, along with world record holder Usain Bolt and Asafa Powell, both of Jamaica.
Members of the U. S. track team are expected to leave for the Games about 10 to 14 days before their event starts. Gay also was committed for a meet in London on July 25 and was considering running in a couple more events in Europe before the Olympics.
The injury will open up another spot in the 200, where Gay, Spearmon, Xavier Carter, defending Olympic champion Shawn Crawford and Walter Dix were considered among the top runners going for only three spots.
There were no more surprises in the 200 semifinals later Saturday, when all the top contenders advanced. Same in the women’s heats, where Felix, 100 champion Muna Lee, Lauryn Williams and Torri Edwards all made it to today’s finals without much drama.
Gay’s injury, however, made the day a little difficult for everyone involved.
“It’s such an awful thing when bad things happen to good people,” Williams said.
If Gay’s injury truly was only a cramp, he could be back on the track soon.
Gay is considered one of the fresh, young faces of a sport that has endured unrelenting doping problems over the past several years. Many were hoping to turn the page this season, and they were hoping Gay, a bit shy, but successful, would be a big part of that.
“I’m really glad they’re saying it’s just a cramp as opposed to what it looked like,” Williams said. “My eyes started to well up, like please, ‘God no, don’t take him away from us now.’ The USA needs him.” How Arkansans fared A look at how athletes with Arkansas ties fared Saturday at the U. S. Olympic trials in Eugene, Ore.:
MEN TYSON GAY (Arkansas ) Pulled up injured in the quarterfinals of the 200 and did not advance. ANTWON HICKS (Hot Springs ) Ran 13. 36 in the 110 hurdles to advance to the quarterfinals, then ran 13. 28 to qualify for the semifinals. J-MEE SAMUELS (Arkansas ) Ran 20. 86 in the 200 quarterfinals to advance, but failed to advance to the final after running 20. 67 in the semifinals. WALLACE SPEARMON JR. (Arkansas ) Ran 20. 59 in the 200 quarterfinals to advance, then advanced to the final after running 20. 05 in the semifinals. WOMEN VIRGINIA MILLER-JOHNSON (Arkansas ) Ran 13. 09 in qualifying for the 100 hurdles, then ran 13. 11 in the quarterfinals to advance to the semifinals. LASHAUNTE’A MOORE (Arkansas ) Ran 22. 72 in the 200 quarterfinals to advance, but failed to advance to the final after running 23. 02 in the semifinals. Arkansans in Olympics A list of athletes with Arkansas ties who have advanced to compete for the United States at the Olympic Games in Beijing MEN ATHLETE (SCHOOL ) EVENT TYSON GAY (Arkansas )...................................................................................................... 100 JEFF HARTWIG (Arkansas State )............................................................................ pole vault WOMEN ATHLETE (SCHOOL ) EVENT DEENA KASTOR (Arkansas )..................................................................................... marathon NICOLE TETER (Arkansas )................................................................................................. 800 AMY YODER-BEGLEY (Arkansas )................................................................................. 10, 000 Competing today A list of athletes with Arkansas ties scheduled to compete today at the U. S. Olympic trials in Eugene, Ore.:
MEN ATHLETE (TIE ) EVENT SAID AHMED (Arkansas )................................................................................................ 1, 500 ERIC BROWN (Arkansas )............................................................................................... javelin ANTWON HICKS (Hot Springs )............................................................................. 110 hurdles ANDY MCCLARY (Arkansas )........................................................................................... 1, 500 MICHAEL ROBERTSON (Beebe )................................................................................... discus WALLACE SPEARMON (Arkansas ).................................................................................... 200 WOMEN ATHLETE (TIE ) EVENT VIRGINIA MILLER-JOHNSON (Arkansas ).............................................................. 100 hurdles JILLIAN SCHWARTZ (Jonesboro )............................................................................ pole vault APRIL STEINER-BENNETT (Arkansas )..................................................................... pole vault CHRISTIN WURTH-THOMAS (Arkansas )......................................................................... 1, 500
FEEDBACK:
Something to say about this topic? Submit a Letter to the Editor online
