Former World and Olympic sprint champion Justin Gatlin says could take “something ridiculous” to get on the podium at this summer’s London Games.
The American 2004 Olympic 100m champion has been enjoying a good spell this season – since returning from from a lengthy suspension – and he said a sub 9.70s might very well be needed to win a medal in London.
“I’m thinking about a 9.6 is going to take it, to win it, it’s going to be a fast race I believe,” Gatlin said on The First Life.
Gatlin, who owns a personal best of 9.85 seconds over the 100m, which he used to win the gold medal in Athens, Greece in 2004, captured his second IAAF World Indoor Championships 60m title earlier this year and he believes it has set him up for is to come later on in the season.
Gatlin will first have to get past a very strong American sprint group headed by Tyson Gay, Walter Dix, Mike Rodgers and Darvis Patton to earn a spot from the USA trials where he then is expected to face a group that could include anyone from, world record holder Usain Bolt, Asafa Powell, Nesta Carter, Yohan Blake – all from Jamaica, as well as Richard Thompson (T&T) and Christophe Lemaitre (FRA) – amongst others at the Games.
Gatlin will certainly not start as the favourite to win the American championships, and he reveals that statistic from the past have proven that he’s a big championships performer.
He said: “I think sometimes that second place makes you work a little harder and it shows you what you need to fix to be a champion and I think that’s what happened in Albuquerque.
“If you look back at my Olympics, I got second to Maurice Greene before going to the Olympics and winning the Olympics.”
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