Usain Bolt declared he will be happy to successfully defend both sprint titles and stay injury-free at the world championships, ruling out the prospect of lowering his 100-meter world record. -- PHOTO: REUTERS
MONACO - USAIN Bolt declared he will be happy to successfully defend both sprint titles and stay injury-free at the world championships, ruling out the prospect of lowering his 100-meter world record.
The Jamaican will take on European champion Christophe Lemaitre of France and teammates Nesta Carter and Michael Frater at the Diamond League meet in Monaco on Friday. It's his last 100 before the worlds open Aug 27 in Daegu, South Korea.
After being hampered by injuries last season, Bolt's season-best time of 9.91 seconds is well short of his world mark.
'I'm not where I want to be. It is getting better but it's a long way from 9.58, for sure,' Bolt told a news conference on Thursday. 'I don't think I'll be in that form this season. But I definitely need to get to 9.6, 9.7. I'm working hard, I'm trying to stay focused on the job I have and it's coming together.
'I'm working hard and I hope I can stay uninjured for the rest of the season. I don't think I've put in the work (needed to set records). I didn't have enough time because of my injuries. Not a lot of people are running 9.6, it's not an easy task.' Bolt ended his season last August because of back and Achilles' injuries after losing to Tyson Gay in Stockholm. He returned in May at Rome, running his fastest 100 of the year. But he is wary of pushing his body too hard, citing his American rival's absence from the worlds following a hip operation.
'People think you just go and run fast,' said Bolt, whose last race before the worlds will be in the 200 at Stockholm. 'But when you get injured it's very hard, as you can see with Tyson Gay, to come back from injuries. -- AP
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