The Jamaican outran his opponents comfortably, racing across the finish line in a time of 9.82 seconds.

Asked if he felt any pain during the run, Bolt replied: “Slightly.”

But he quickly added that he “would not say it was painful, but that it takes time to heal.”

Overall, the world champion assessed: “I was feeling extremely nice and good.

“It’s getting better and the weather was warm so it was good.”

Fellow Jamaican Yohan Blake came second with 9.96s while Churandy Martina took third with 10.16s.

Bolt, the world record holder for 100 metres and 200 metres, had decided to run the sprint instead of the 200 in order to avoid any new injury, the organisers of the Athletissima meeting in Lausanne had said ahead of the event.

He said he would still have to “go back to the doctor to ask” when he should take on a 200 metres race.

Bolt had missed another Diamond League event in New York last month due to his injury.

Source – AFP

Bolt has not competed since injuring his Achilles tendon at the Golden Spike meeting in Ostrava six weeks ago and, on the advice of German specialist Dr Hans-Wilhelm Muller-Wolfhart, has accepted he must restrict running bends. Bolt will test out his fitness in a 100m race which was not on the original timetable.

“The specialist has told me because of the injury I should avoid running the curve,” Bolt said. “In the morning when I get up it’s kind of stiff but when I move around it’s fine and goes away.”

Bolt, who saw Dr Muller-Wolfhart immediately after feeling a sore hamstring after his Ostrava race, added: “The doctor said I should take three weeks off and then in the fourth I did speed endurance and last week speed work.

“When I did the speed work I actually tried doing bend work but it aggravated the injury, so I’ve just been doing straight work. I’m not really worried. My coach told me when I came into track and field I will get injured. The most important thing for me is to get through the race, see where I am at and finish injury free.”

However, Bolt sees it as an important step as he resumes his racing schedule and is determined to honour as many of his appearances as possible, even though 200m races may now be ruled out.

Bolt’s next outing will be a 100m clash with fellow countryman Asafa Powell at the Diamond League in Paris next Friday, while he also has appearances in London, Zurich and Brussels in his programme.

Associated Press

“I developed a stiffness in my Achilles tendon last week and sought medical attention. After careful consultation with Dr. Hans Müller-Wohlfahrt at his clinic in Munich, I have been advised to take a 2-3 week break as a precautionary measure to avoid risking further damage. Regrettably I will have to miss the IAAF Diamond League meeting in New York on Saturday, June 12. I am well aware of the disappointment for the fans in New York and around the world, but I hope to return to New York as soon as possible.”

Please see our Usain Bolt Schedule page for the races he is scheduled to run for the rest of the 2010 season.

The world 100 and 200m record holder clocked 30.97secs on a wet track, finishing well clear of fellow Jamaican Jermaine Gonzales who clocked 32.49.

Source: Press Association

Bolt told reporters

I did lots of 300s in training, so I know the distance, but this will be my first in competition. I’m looking forward to it, I hope for a good time.

Live coverage for the Ostrava meeting will kick off at 5pm (GMT) on British Eurosport 2.

The Start List for the 200m is as follows:

1. ZHANG, Peimeng – China

2. TAKAHIRA, Shinji – Japan

3. BAILEY, Ryan – USA

4. ANDERSON, Marvin – Jamaica

5. MARTINA, Churandy – Antilles

6. BOLT, Usain – Jamaica

7. TAYLOR, Angelo – USA

8. LI, Mingxuan – China

9. POGNON, Ronald – France

Bolt, who owns the world record of 9.58, was the only man under the 10-second barrier, with fellow Jamaican Michael Frater finishing second in 10.15. American Mike Rodgers came third in 10.18.

Another American Travis Padgett, who clocked 9.92 in the windy Doha Diamond League meet last week, could only manage fifth in 10.30, as the athletes got a feel for the stadium that will host the world championships next year.

Bolt’s time contrasted to key rival Asafa Powell’s 9.81 at Doha, where he was powered by a gusting desert wind.

Source: AFP

“I felt good, the race was a good one and I am on target to have a good season,” Bolt told reporters after his first individual race of the season.

“My training has been going well and I am pleased with my performance,” he added.

The Jamaican’s world record stands at 19.19 seconds, which he set at last year’s world championships in Berlin, and his latest effort was all the more impressive as it was run into a headwind of 0.8 meters per second.

Running from lane five, he quickly left the field behind and ran through to the finish without easing up. Bolt’s next race is his first 100m of the season in Daegu, South Korea on May 19. American world bronze medalist Wallace Spearmon also dipped under 20 seconds, running 19.98 seconds to finish a distant second.

Source: Reuters

Bolt, clocked in 8.79 seconds for the last leg, brought home a group that also included Mario Forsythe, Yohan Blake and Marvin Anderson in 37.90 seconds, breaking the meet record set last year by a US squad by .02 of a second.

“It’s a very good stepping stone to show that our track club is stepping up and doing well, especially on this 4×100,” Bolt said.

“We’ve been doing baton changes for two weeks. We came here really focused and ready and we came out there and executed.”

The Jamaica Gold squad ran the fastest time in the world this year with USA Blue — featuring Walter Dix, Mike Rodgers, Shawn Crawford and Ivory Williams — finished second in 38.33 seconds and USA Red third in 38.50.

Bolt, also on the prior 2010 4×100 best of 38.08 by Racers Lions in Kingston in February, got the baton with the lead and rolled home in typical explosive fashion.

“I told the guys to make sure I didn’t have to work, because I really didn’t want to do much,” Bolt said. “I got the baton pretty much in front, so I wasn’t really worried about anything else.”

The effort mattered so much that Bolt’s coach set up the same marking on their home training track that were found on the Penn Relays surface.

A record crowd of 54,310 packed Franklin Field to see Bolt, who set world records in the 100m, 200m and 4×100m relay at the 2008 Beijing Olympics and added three titles and two world records at Berlin’s 2009 World Championships.

“Over the past two years I’ve been surprised by the amount of people that know me and the welcome I get when I go to track meets or functions,” Bolt said. “I’m still trying to get used to it and I’m enjoying it.”

Bolt, who said he felt no pressure and was able to run a relaxed race, had raced in the event in high school in 2002 and said he was excited to be back.

“The crowd here has always been wonderful,” Bolt said. “I haven’t been here in a while. I was really looking forward to it. It was awesome. The experience was wonderful.”

A huge number of Jamaican supporters made for a loud and lively atmosphere seldom seen in other spots around the world.

“It was very loud,” Bolt said. “The starter was telling the crowd to be quiet. That’s one in a million. When you go anywhere else in the world, they are quiet (for the start).

“You get in front of Jamaicans and they make noise until you ask them to be quiet.”

Source : AFP