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Usain Bolt: Hamstring Injury Might Hamper Gold Medal Title Defense

London – Question marks over Usain Bolt’s fitness continue to hamper the Jamaican sprinter’s build-up to the defense of his gold medal titles in London. The triple gold medallist from Beijing is the number one attraction of the London Games, but the question mark over his troublesome hamstring has added an extra layer of intrigue to what is already an eye-wateringly exciting 100 meters race. Bolt needed some stretching and massage treatment for a tight hamstring following his 200m defeat by Yohan Blake in the Jamaican trials at the start of the month, having also lost to Blake in the 100m days earlier when he looked to be nursing the injury with a tentative start.

He immediately withdrew from last Friday’s Monaco Diamond League meeting where he had been due to run the 200m in a last race before the Olympics.

Bolt then traveled to Germany to see renowned German sports doctor Hans-Wilhelm Muller-Wohlfahrt, though his agent Ricky Simms said the trip had been long-scheduled as part of his regular ‘rehabilitation’ regime.

The 6ft 5ins (1.95m) sprinter suffered with hamstring troubles early in his career, a problem linked to a curvature in his spine, and has to put himself through a grueling stretching and conditioning regime to prevent any recurrence.

‘He had a slightly tight hamstring during the trials and that’s why possibly he didn’t push as hard as he could have,’ Simms said recently when assuring the public that his man would be in good shape for London.

‘He was just protecting that. The main thing at the trials was to get through and get on the team for the Olympic Games.

‘His coach decided that he needs to get a little bit of massage and treatment on that and rest up, and then train again hard next week so that he’s ready for the Olympic Games.’

Read the rest at: Daily Mail


 

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