Tyson Gay of the U.S., left, wins the men's 100m ahead of Jamaica's Usain Bolt, right, at the IAAF Diamond League 'DN Galan' at the Stockholm Olympic Stadium in Stockholm, Sweden, Friday Aug. 6, 2010.
STOCKHOLM, Aug. 6 -- World record holder and Olympic champion Usain Bolt crashed to his first defeat in two years on Friday.
America's Tyson Gay won their eagerly-awaited 100m clash at the Stockholm Diamond League meeting.
Gay clocked 9.84 seconds to edge down Bolt, who was second in 9. 97 seconds while Trinidad's Richard Thompson was third in 10.10 seconds. The American always looked in complete control against world record-holder Bolt.
A sellout crowd in the 1912 Olympic Stadium was silent before the race between the two fastest men of all time. And the tension increased among the 20,000 spectators even further after two false starts.
The pair raced side by side in lanes four and five and Gay looked comfortable throughout, slowly pulling away while the Jamaican was straining to keep up in the highly anticipated race.
"I'm really happy with the win, even though Usain Bolt isn't in the best shape," Gay said.
Bolt has ran faster this year, timing 9.82 a month ago in Lausanne, Switzerland.
"I think (today) showed that I wasn't in the best of shape," Bolt said. "I'm not unbeatable. I can be beaten and it showed today. This is my easy season. If you don't beat me this season it 's not going to happen next season because next year is a championship year."
The sprinters both looked like they left plenty in reserve when they cruised through the heats, and so it proved for Gay when it came to the final.
Asafa Powell of Jamaica pulled out of the race on Wednesday with a back injury, denying fans the chance to see the first race between the world's three fastest men since Bolt stormed to a new world record of 9.58 last August at the world championships in Berlin.
In other events, Darya Klishna of Russia beat a top-class field in the women's long jump with 6.78 meters. Brittney Reese of the United States was second with 6.75, and European silver medallist Naide Gomes of Portugal third with 6.72.
American Bershawn Jackson set a new stadium record of 47.65 in the 400 hurdles. Javier Culson of Puerto Rico was a distant second in 48.50 and Angelo Taylor of the United States was third in 49.57.
Tyson Gay of the U.S. reacts after winning the men's 100m race ahead of Jamaica's Usain Bolt, not pictured, at the IAAF Diamond League 'DN Galan' at the Stockholm Olympic Stadium in Stockholm, Sweden, Friday Aug. 6, 2010.
(AFP)
