Justin Gatlin has agreed that the long wait before their 4x100m final
at the World Championships on Saturday, was the cause of Usain Bolt’s
injury in his last race.
Bolt, having been passed the baton by Yohan Blake, was in third
behind Great Britain and the United States, who eventually won gold and
silver. But he pulled up almost 50m from the line and fell to the track.
Jamaica’s team doctor later confirmed the 30-year-old had suffered a hamstring cramp.
Bolt’s team-mates complained that a 45-minute wait in the call room before the race had hampered their preparations.
“I think they were holding us too long in the call room,” Blake told reporters.
“Usain was really cold. In fact Usain said to me `Yohan, I think this
is crazy. Forty minutes and two medal presentations before our run.”
Gatlin, who beat Bolt to gold in the 100m last Saturday, also laid the blame at the television scheduling for the event.
“I know it’s TV magic, and everybody has to be prepared on time to make everything happen for the viewers at home.
“(But) I personally think that we were held in the stadium a little
too long without our clothes on, and there was a little draught in
there. I lost all my sweat and body heat,” Gatlin said.