Althletics News

Sprint legend Michael Johnson believes Usain Bolt should consider moving up to 400m after an impressive relay display.

Bolt clocked a 43.58-second split in a 4×400 relay at a local meet in Jamaica 10 days ago.

American Johnson’s world record from a standing start is 43.18 sec and his best split time in a relay – from a rolling start – was 42.94.

“He has the ability to be a world record holder. If it were me, I would move to the 400 now,” said Johnson.

Bolt set world records for the 100m and 200m last year and was part of the Jamaica 4×100m relay team that set a world record and won Olympic gold in Beijing in 2008.

However, no athlete has ever held the world record in the 100, 200 and 400 metres.

Last month, running the anchor leg for the Racers Lions team, Bolt collected the baton in fourth position, 20 metres behind the leader, and managed to close the gap to just 0.44 sec at the finish line.

Johnson recently visited Bolt in Jamaica while filming for a forthcoming BBC Inside Sport documentary.

“It’s not surprising to me. He understands, though, that it will take a lot more work training for the 400 than for the 100 and 200,” he said.

Bolt regularly runs the 400m as part of his stamina work early each season.

He has said in the past that he will only seriously consider attempting the event after defending his world and Olympic 100 and 200 titles.

But he dropped a strong hint last September that he may change his position on the event depending on what his coach advises.

“The 400, I don’t want to do. But I think I’ll do it in the future because my coach can be very convincing. And he’ll find some argument for me to do it,” he said at the time.

“I think I would be pretty good at it, as I have tried it when I was young, just messing around.”

Johnson believes the man who beat his long-standing 200m world record at the Beijing Olympics, then lowered it to a staggering 19.19 at the World Championships in Berlin, would benefit from a new challenge.

“I think ultimately he will have to choose another event because eventually there will be no motivation to continue at 100 and 200 since he has already achieved everything there,” he said.

Sprint legend Michael Johnson believes Usain Bolt should consider moving up to 400m after an impressive relay display.

Bolt clocked a 43.58-second split in a 4×400 relay at a local meet in Jamaica 10 days ago.

American Johnson’s world record from a standing start is 43.18 sec and his best split time in a relay – from a rolling start – was 42.94.

“He has the ability to be a world record holder. If it were me, I would move to the 400 now,” said Johnson.

Bolt set world records for the 100m and 200m last year and was part of the Jamaica 4×100m relay team that set a world record and won Olympic gold in Beijing in 2008.

However, no athlete has ever held the world record in the 100, 200 and 400 metres.

Last month, running the anchor leg for the Racers Lions team, Bolt collected the baton in fourth position, 20 metres behind the leader, and managed to close the gap to just 0.44 sec at the finish line.

Johnson recently visited Bolt in Jamaica while filming for a forthcoming BBC Inside Sport documentary.

“It’s not surprising to me. He understands, though, that it will take a lot more work training for the 400 than for the 100 and 200,” he said.

Bolt regularly runs the 400m as part of his stamina work early each season.

He has said in the past that he will only seriously consider attempting the event after defending his world and Olympic 100 and 200 titles.

But he dropped a strong hint last September that he may change his position on the event depending on what his coach advises.

“The 400, I don’t want to do. But I think I’ll do it in the future because my coach can be very convincing. And he’ll find some argument for me to do it,” he said at the time.

“I think I would be pretty good at it, as I have tried it when I was young, just messing around.”

Johnson believes the man who beat his long-standing 200m world record at the Beijing Olympics, then lowered it to a staggering 19.19 at the World Championships in Berlin, would benefit from a new challenge.

“I think ultimately he will have to choose another event because eventually there will be no motivation to continue at 100 and 200 since he has already achieved everything there,” he said.

UK Athletics head coach Charles van Commenee says he is “disappointed” by Phillips Idowu’s decision to withdraw from the World Indoor Championships.

World triple jump champion Idowu, 31, pulled out of the event, which runs from 12-14 March, following the birth of his second child last week.

Van Commenee explained: “I am disappointed Phillips is not competing as he was a clear medal prospect.”

Idowu would have been defending his World Indoor crown in Doha.

“I am gutted not to be representing GB and passing up the opportunity to defend my title,” said Idowu, who won outdoor gold in Berlin in 2009.

“However the late arrival of my baby boy has meant that my training has been severely disrupted.

“I decided after talking to my coach that I had not had the preparation we agreed was needed to do the British team proud.

“I was hoping to avoid this by competing in a larger than usual number of events early in the season, but it hasn’t worked out that way.

“Instead I will increase the training with a focus on the European Championships in Barcelona. I wish the team the best of luck in Doha.”

UK Athletics confirmed on Monday that Idowu had withdrawn from Great Britain’s 37-strong squad for the event – and, while disappointed to lose a medal prospect, Van Commenee chose not to dwell on the situation.

“I need to respect his decision and I look forward to him resuming winning ways in Barcelona in the summer,” said Van Commenee.

Idowu jumped a season’s best of 17.25m at the UK Indoor Grand Prix in Birmingham in February, but that was only good enough for fourth place.

The Londoner, who won silver at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, has not been in top form this season and sits joint sixth on the list of leading jumpers.

Italy’s Fabrizio Donato is at the top with a mark of 17.39m, ahead of Sweden’s Christian Olsson (17.32), a two-time former World Indoor champion getting back to his best after a succession of injuries.

Dwain Chambers in the 60m, Jenny Meadows in the 800m and Jessica Ennis in the pentathlon will lead Britain’s bid for medals at the competition.

UK Athletics head coach Charles van Commenee says he is “disappointed” by Phillips Idowu’s decision to withdraw from the World Indoor Championships.

World triple jump champion Idowu, 31, pulled out of the event, which runs from 12-14 March, following the birth of his second child last week.

Van Commenee explained: “I am disappointed Phillips is not competing as he was a clear medal prospect.”

Idowu would have been defending his World Indoor crown in Doha.

“I am gutted not to be representing GB and passing up the opportunity to defend my title,” said Idowu, who won outdoor gold in Berlin in 2009.

“However the late arrival of my baby boy has meant that my training has been severely disrupted.

“I decided after talking to my coach that I had not had the preparation we agreed was needed to do the British team proud.

“I was hoping to avoid this by competing in a larger than usual number of events early in the season, but it hasn’t worked out that way.

“Instead I will increase the training with a focus on the European Championships in Barcelona. I wish the team the best of luck in Doha.”

UK Athletics confirmed on Monday that Idowu had withdrawn from Great Britain’s 37-strong squad for the event – and, while disappointed to lose a medal prospect, Van Commenee chose not to dwell on the situation.

“I need to respect his decision and I look forward to him resuming winning ways in Barcelona in the summer,” said Van Commenee.

Idowu jumped a season’s best of 17.25m at the UK Indoor Grand Prix in Birmingham in February, but that was only good enough for fourth place.

The Londoner, who won silver at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, has not been in top form this season and sits joint sixth on the list of leading jumpers.

Italy’s Fabrizio Donato is at the top with a mark of 17.39m, ahead of Sweden’s Christian Olsson (17.32), a two-time former World Indoor champion getting back to his best after a succession of injuries.

Dwain Chambers in the 60m, Jenny Meadows in the 800m and Jessica Ennis in the pentathlon will lead Britain’s bid for medals at the competition.

UK Athletics head coach Charles van Commenee is adamant that Britain’s athletes will prepare at an overseas training camp ahead of the Olympics.

London 2012 chairman Lord Sebastian Coe believes GB’s athletes might benefit from training in a familiar environment in the run-up to the 2012 Games.

But Van Commenee, 51, insisted: “That’s his view, I don’t agree with that.

“My Australian colleague who was in charge at Sydney 2000 had some advice for me – ‘Don’t prepare at home’.”

For the 2008 Beijing Olympics the British Olympic Association set up a holding camp in Macau in the Far East.

Four years earlier athletes prepared for the Greece Olympics in Cyprus, while in 2000 a pre-Olympic camp was held on Australia’s Gold Coast.

For major events, such as the 2009 World Championships in Berlin, GB athletes have traditionally prepared at a holding camp in Monte Gordo in Portugal.

Van Commenee thinks Britain’s athletes will benefit from preparing away from the anticipated intense media scrutiny as well as taking advantage of the Mediterranean’s warm weather.

“I am not running away from the pressure,” added Van Commenee.

“You have to embrace the pressure but you also want to be in a quiet environment where you have a guarantee of good weather and don’t have your cousin chasing you for tickets.”

British Swimming is also planning to set up an overseas base.

The BOA has looked at establishing a pre-2012 camp at Aldershot’s army barracks.

“We have looked at a number of sites and we will work with all sports to come up with the best solution for them,” a BOA spokesman told BBC Sport.

“Details of our preparation camps are still to be formally announced.”

The track and field teams of both the United States and Jamaica have signed deals with Birmingham City Council to prepare for 2012 in training camps in the Midlands city.

Van Commenee was named as national head coach of UK Athletics in September 2008, when he took over from Dave Collins.

The Dutchman guided Denise Lewis to the 2000 Olympic heptathlon gold medal and Kelly Sotherton to bronze in 2004.

As technical director of the Dutch Olympic Committee, the 50-year-old led his country to its second best Games medal haul at the 2008 event in China.

With a reputation for hard work and honesty, Van Commenee has been charged with reviving the fortunes of Britain’s athletes ahead of the London Olympics after a poor showing in Beijing, when Team GB won four medals, falling short of its target of five.