Bolt, Gay, or Powell in the Men’s Olympic 100 Meter Showdown

Here is a special gift for you online sports betting enthusiasts and Olympic wagering fanatics in the form of an informative Olympic track and field wagering article on what promises to be an absolutely thrilling Men’s 100 Meter Gold Medal showdown at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

It’s about the upcoming 100 meter Olympic men’s showdown that features three sub-9.8 second performers for the first time in Olympic track and field history and the opportunity that BetUS Olympic bettors have on making a solid winning wager in the BetUS Sportsbook.

With that in mind, here is a look at each of the sprinters competing in the 2008 100 Meters and their respective Olympic Odds on actually winning the event followed by my analysis and selection on which star will actually hoist the Gold Medal.

100 Meter Gold Medal Olympic Odds

Usain Bolt – Jamaica +150

Bolt, the current world record holder, set the world record of 9.72 seconds in New York on May 31 with a wind of 1.7 m/s.

Tyson Gay – USA +155

Gay posted 9.77 plus a wind-assisted 9.68, the fastest time recorded for the distance.

Asafa Powell – Jamaica +300

Powell came in fifth in the 2004 Olympics in Athens, recording a time of 9.94 behind winner Justin Gatlin of the United States, who was later banned for doping. Just one year later - on the very same track no less - Powell set a world record of 9.77 and improved it even further to 9.74 in 2007. Powell also recently went on record to say, "I feel great, very fresh. I've got a world record in my legs. I am very confident. My goal is to be consistent."

Walter Dix – USA +1600

At the tender age of 22, Dix is already the U.S. Men’s 200 Meter champion and runner-up in the 100 Meter recording a time of 9.80w seconds, before winning his first-ever national title in the 200 meters by five-thousandths of a second over runner-up and 2004 Olympic gold medalist Shawn Crawford.

Derrick Atkins – Bahamas +2000

On August 26, at the 2007 World Championships, the Bahamian-born Atkins placed second to Tyson Gay, (9.85) with a national record time of 9.91s Atkins beat the world record holder at the time and favorite for the event, Asafa Powell who ran 9.96 seconds.

Francis Obikwelu – Portugal +5000

The defending Olympic silver medalist finished second to Justin Gatlin at the 2004 Athens Games, recording a time of 10.04 seconds.

Jaysuma Saidy Ndure – Norway +4000

Ndure is legitimate, having run a personal-best time of 10.06.

Darrel Brown – Trinidad +10000

Brown is another legitimate contender, recording a personal best of 9.99 in June 2005.

Olusoji Fasuba – Nigeria +8000

Fasuba finished fourth at the 2007 World Championships with a time of 10.07 seconds and won the World Indoor Championships 60 Meter sprint on March 8, 2008 in a time of 6.51 seconds

Samuel Francis – Qatar +10000

Francis ran a 10.18 at the 2007 Asian World Championships to set a new championship record.

Analysis: While I will admit that it’s a real shame that the sport of track and field, much like cycling, has come under so much doping scrutiny because of the actions of some of the sport’s former, supposed superstars, like Marion Jones, Justin Gatlin, Ben Johnson and a slew of others, I’ll also go on record to admit emphatically state that there may not be a more thrilling sport than track and field, despite the lack of attention the sport gets outside of Europe.