Blake increases the heat on Bolt with Lucerne victory

 

Wednesday 18 July 2012 11:16 BST
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Yohan Blake won the 100m in Lucerne last night in a meet-record time of 9.85 sec
Yohan Blake won the 100m in Lucerne last night in a meet-record time of 9.85 sec

Yohan Blake was in record-breaking form in Switzerland last night as he applied the finishing touches to his preparations for his double-headed Olympic showdown with his training partner and Jamaican team-mate Usain Bolt.

The 22-year-old powered to a decisive victory in the 100m at the Spitzen meeting in Lucerne in 9.85sec – 0.01sec inside the meet record held by another Jamaican, Nesta Carter. The time was 0.10sec shy of the 2012 world leading time he clocked when beating Bolt in the Jamaican Olympic trials.

Blake, right, beat Bolt over 100m and 200m at the Jamaican trials in Kingston last month and he insisted yesterday that the bond between them would survive the eagerly awaited rematches between the two Racers Track Club stable mates at the London Olympics. "Win, lose or draw we are friends, even though it is a business and he wants to win and I want to win," he insisted.

Blake, who claimed the 100m title at the World Championships after Bolt had been disqualified for a false start, said that his training partner was an inspiration to him. "He will say to me, 'Yohan, look you're doing this for the people... You're doing this for yourself.' He can motivate me."

The men's Olympic 100m and 200m finals are on 5 and 9 August respectively.

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