Ussain Bolt clocks fastest time of the year

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World record holder Usain Bolt stormed to the fastest time of the year in winning the 100m at the Diamond League meeting here on Thursday.

Olympic champion Bolt ran 9.76sec, beating the time he set earlier this month in Kingston by six hundredths of a second.

Compatriot and former world record holder Asafa Powell was second in 9.91sec with French European champion Christophe Lemaitre an impressive third in a high quality field in 10.04sec.

World bronze medallist Kim Collins of St Kitts & Nevis was fourth in 10.05sec. The win, and more importantly the time, made up for Bolt’s sluggish performance in Ostrava last week where he ran his slowest time in three years, 10.04sec.

Although he said on Tuesday he wasn’t bothered by that run, it clearly had got to him. Asked if he was happy to have put that run behind him, Bolt was categoric. “Yes, it’s a slight relief, I knew i could do it,” he told BBC3.

“I’ve not been sleeping very well since I arrived in Europe so I made sure I’ve been going to bed earlier. I’m feeling good now, I’m coming back,” Bolt said.

“People expect me to do well, I expect it of myself also. I came here tonight not to prove to the world anything but to show I’ve still got it,” he added.

Bolt believes he needs to go back to the drawing board. “Overall it was a good race, last time I came here it was without a lot of races, but this time the execution was good,” he said.

“I’m happy but I’m just going to go home and call my coach so he can explain to me what I did wrong, what I did right and I’ll look forward to the next race,” he said.

The Olympic champion was a little terse when asked for the umpteenth time about his poor run in Ostrava.

“I’ve expained to you guys that everyone has a bad race every now and again, I just have to go back to the drawing board,” he said.

“I do eat fast food but I do try to get a lot of pasta in, as you get older you have to watch your diet.” As for his start he wasn’t entirely satisfied, despite Lemaitre next to him coming out the blocks far slower.