Usain Bolt beats 10 seconds for the first time this year as he sends 100m rivals a warning before World Championships swansong
Jamaican legend stepped up a gear as he wins Diamond League event in Monaco in preparation for his London bow
USAIN BOLT sent a warning to his rivals ahead of his sprint swansong at the London World Championships.
The Jamaican superstar, 30, won his final Diamond League 100 metres meeting in a time of 9.95sec in Monaco.
And it was the first time this season the athletics legend had broken the ten-second barrier.
He might have gone even faster had he got a better start at the Stade Louis II — and if he had bothered to dip at the finishing line.
Exactly two weeks tonight he will bid to defend his world title at London 2017.
Bolt said here two days ago he wants to win gold in style to make amends for the false-start that cost him the world title in Daegu six years ago.
His rivals last night included South African Akani Simbine — who had gone quicker than ten seconds eight times already this year.
Also in the field were Brit CJ Ujah — who ran 9.98 to win the Rabat Diamond League last week — and four others who have dipped below the 10-second marker.
most read in athletics
Ujah clocked 10.02 last night to finish fourth with Simbine third in the same time. American Isiah Young was second in 9.98.
But eight-times Olympic champion Bolt showed up again when it mattered.
And it puts to bed any doubts about his form after a back injury earlier this season.
It is now game on for London 2017 as he sent out a message to rising stars like Andre de Grasse, who took bronze in Rio last summer and his old foe Justin Gatlin, who won Olympic silver.
Bolt is now unbeaten over 100m since 2013 when arch-rival, American drug cheat Gatlin, pipped him to the line at the Rome Diamond League.
But Monaco officials denied Bolt the chance to do a lap of honour — with the men’s 3,000m steeplechase still to come at the end of the night.
Olympic 400m champion WAYDE VAN NIEKERK, who Bolt has tipped to succeed him as an athletics superstar, won the one-lap event in a meeting-record 43.75.
The South African, 25, held off the threat of the Botswana pair Isaac Makwala and Baboloki Thebe.
His controversial team-mate CASTER SEMENYA won the women’s 800m in a personal best of 1:55.27, showing the sort of form that could see her break the world record at London 2017 - a mark of 1:53.28 which has stood since 1983.
Reigning European champion DINA ASHER-SMITH, who has faced a race against time to be fit for London 2017 after breaking her foot in February, was third in the 200m with a season’s best of 22.89 despite throwing up before she got in the blocks.
She said: “I think I ate something bad. I know I’m in better shape than that.”
Keep up to date with ALL the transfer news and gossip on our blog