NPR : All Things Considered

Usain Bolt Cements His Place In History, Winning 200 Meter Gold

By: Eyder Peralta // August 9, 2012
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Usain Bolt cemented his place as one of the greatest sprinters in history, when he won the 200 meter final today.

Bolt was challenged by his Jamaican teammate Yohan Blake, who closed in with less than 100 meters to go. Bolt kicked on his burners and ended up taking back the lead and beating Blake 19.32 to 19.44 seconds.

The big deal here is that this makes Bolt the first Olympian to win both the 100 meter and 200 meter races two Olympics in a row.

Warren Weir, another Jamaican, took third.

The AP adds:

"The 25-year-old Bolt won the 100 on Sunday and now has five Olympic golds a number he celebrated by hitting the ground and doing five push-ups a few meters past the finish line.

"Bolt, who has long considered the 200 his favorite event, will try to make it 6-for-6 at the Olympics in the 4x100 relay, which starts Friday.

"The last country to sweep the 200 was the United States in 2004."

NPR's Tom Goldman reminds our Newscast unit that Bolt did not break the 19.19 world record, which he holds. Still, said Tom, this was a "thrilling" race.

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