FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Tyson Gay ran two rounds of the 100-meter dash on day one of track and field competition at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China on Friday. NBC will broadcast portions of today’s track and field events Friday night starting at 7 p.m. CT.
In the prelims, running in heat five, lane two, he easily crossed the line first with a clocking of 10.22.
"(My hamstring) feels good,” Gay said, after the first round of competition. “I felt a little sluggish in the first round, but my body’s woken up now.”
In the next round, the quarterfinals, he finished second in his heat. Running out of heat two, lane four, he recorded a time of 10.09.
“I felt good (during the second round,” Gay said. “I felt pretty relaxed. I just wanted to make it through to the next round. My leg felt alright.”
All three Americans, Gay, Darvis Patton and Walter Dix advanced to Saturday’s semifinals in the event. The finals will also be contested on Saturday.
In preparation for the 5,000 meters later this week, Alistair Cragg ran the opening round of the 1,500 meters. He finished eighth in his heat, just three spots out of qualifying for the next round of competition. He clocked a time of 3:44.90.
Amy Yoder Begley competed in the 10,000 meters finals on Friday. She finished 26th in the event with a time of 32:38.28. American Shalane Flanagan won bronze in a time of 30:22.22, setting a new American record.
“The three of us (Flanagan, Kara Goucher, Yoder Begley) came from similar backgrounds,” Yoder Begley said. “We all see how hard we all work. It’s very encouraging for us. I had 13 people in the stands (cheering me on). I would like to drift into the marathon. If I can stay healthy for a year, I definitely will do a marathon.”
In other Razorback action, Nicole Teter stepped on the track for the opening round of the 800 meters but was unable to finish the race. She has been battling injuries during her training.
“I’ve had a two week semi-unknown, semi-undiagnosed injury in my left Achilles area,” Teter said. “Our medical team has done so much for me since I've been here. I really thought I could just step on the track and get through it. This is the Olympics, I had to go for it. My first stride, I just couldn't get on my toes. I went as far as I could and I just couldn't do it.”
For complete results from the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, visit IAAF.org. For up-to-date information on the Razorbacks in Beijing, visit ArkansasRazorbacks.com.
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