Athletics: Powell poised to rewrite

In the short time it takes you to read this opening sentence, an in-form Asafa Powell will be out of the blocks like a coiled spring, his legs acting as natural-born pistons, accelerating him towards an invisible tape 100m down the track.

And if it took you longer than 9.77s to read it, you're beaten.

Powell, 23, is an unbackable favourite for the 100m that starts at the MCG today. The final is tomorrow night.

Not only has Powell clocked the fastest time ever - 9.77s set in Athens in June last year - but he has led Caribbean sprinting back to a pinnacle last occupied by Trinidad's Hasely Crawford and Jamaican Don Quarrie, who finished first and second respecitvely at the 1976 Olympics 100m (Quarrie won the 200m).

There have been hints of a resurgence in the intervening years. Ato Boldon has a clutch of Olympic medals, none of them gold, and Obadele Thompson became the first Bajan to win an Olympic medal when finishing third behind Maurice Green and Boldon in Sydney.

But when Powell stopped the clock one-hundredth of a second faster than Tim Montgomery last year, the Jamaican's place in history was secured.

Already people are talking about a potential race between Powell and American Justin Gatlin at the Beijing Olympics two years down the track.

But that can wait. The next two days of competition should be all about the Caribbean.

Also lining up in the 100m is the second-place-getter at last year's world championships - Michael Frater of Jamaica.

Throw in Trinidad's Marc Burns, a finalist at last year's world champs and a sprinter with a personal best of 9.96s, and there is potential for a Caribbean-dominated final, although a major disappointment is the absence of defending Commonwealth champion Kim Collins of St Kitts and Nevis through injury.

Powell's form, coming back from the hamstring injury that kept him out of last year's world champs, cannot be faulted.

At a pre-Games meet at Olympic Park, Melbourne, 10 days ago, Powell looked awesome in anchoring the winning Jamaican 4x100m relay team, cantering the last 40m and still clocking 10.17s.

"I was quite nervous out there," Powell, who was running his first 100m in more than seven months, said following the race.

"I need the confidence but I'm the [100m] world-record holder and had to prove that I am.

"I'm running against a pretty good field - Michael Frater, Marc Burns and the other guys."

There have been whispers that Melbourne might see Powell break his world record. That will depend on how well the MCG's new synthetic track has bedded down, the strength of the wind that has plagued Melbourne all summer, Powell's sometimes delicate legs and how much competition he gets.

However, Powell gave a broad hint that something special was in the offing. "I'm feeling pretty good... but look for something different at the Commonwealth Games," the humble son of a preacher man said.

It is consistent with the message Powell preached after he set the record at Athens. Afterwards he indicated he thought he could go faster. "It shows no one knows how fast a man can run." But don't mistake his confidence for boastfulness. Powell doesn't do braggadocio.

Once upon a time, Powell's local paper, the Gleaner, asked Powell to describe himself.

He said: "Asafa is just a humble person, very shy. He doesn't 'run down' anything, he's very quiet, he stays out of trouble, he's a Christian."

In that respect, he might find the adulation that comes with winning medals difficult to take.

When Crawford returned to Trinidad he was awarded the Trinity Cross, his picture adorned two postage stamps, an airplane was named after him and six Calypso songs were written in his honour.

There's a statue in Kingston, Jamaica, of Quarrie.

Soon it might have company.

- HERALD ON SUNDAY