Kerley has been pretty dominant and more importantly is showing consistency. He also shows up for the biggest races unlike Trayvon. Plenty of other guys that can run 9.8 or better on a good day too. It is probably deeper in talent than ever tbh.
He ran 6.5 over 60m this indoor season so it's wrong to say he's back at his pre2021 level where he was running mid 6.6.
He's most likely still injured (like he has been for 75% of his career, that's why he dropped the long jump 6 years ago) and it honestly would've been more suspect if he clocked a 9.9 or 10.0 just 10days after getting a back injury. His Powell like running style requires an insane amount of power, even for sprint standards, and he clearly couldn't push or tap the ground past his drive phase.
He had the same kind of problem last season and got mediocre perfs because of that (10.12 in the italian champs in june) but was still able to drop a solid time (9.95) to win the European champs mid august while still recovering from an hamstring injury. So i wouldn't completely write him off for this season yet
Kerley's crazy speed maintenance is what gives him the edge in those races. But in these big occasions (Rabat and Firenze DL, WC final last year) he also struggled to produce this incredible drive phase that allowed him to get to his top speed quicker and run low 9.8s or high 9.7s. That might cost him if a poor starter like lyles finally get it together
The absurdity of Jacobs winning Olympic gold is actually kind of funny—I mean, if you’re participating in a clown show, you might as well bring maximum farce, right?
LMAO all the other users he beat, standing around after the finish all looking like they just sharted 😂
Prior to 2021 his best was 10.03 - 2018,2019,2020 his season bests (of multiple 100's) was 10.08, 10.03, 10.10.
In 2021, he ran 9.95 in a small Italian meet and 9.99 in Monaco which was his only sub 10 prior to stepping foot on the track in Tokyo. I know literally that is "multiple" times but I don't think that's you really meant right? Because the discussion is, was he a solid sub 10 performer before suddenly ripping off 9.80 to win the Olympic title (12th fastest time ever) and the answer to that is not even close.
So he never broke 10 before 2021 then ran 9.8 to win an olympic gold. I don't need to know anything else about Marcell Jacobs.
He had a nutritionist at the time.
Good point. I heard that after making a bit of $$$ after that Olympic gold he gave up the greens and started eating the Italian equivalent of Dominoes pizza and drinking Diet Coke. Oh wait you meant that type of nutritionist…
10.21 is actually outstanding for a season opener.
It's all relative....for an average sprinter in April/May, yes. But for THE Olympic Champion with a 9.80 all time great PB in June, a time that would've won every Olympic gold in history except for 2 (including beating bolt in 2016), it's tragic. I suspect he's still carrying an injury....nothing else proven can explain a 10.21 by a 9.80 guy. A 10.0 opener would've been respectable for Jacobs, even in a loss.
He ran 6.5 over 60m this indoor season so it's wrong to say he's back at his pre2021 level where he was running mid 6.6.
He's most likely still injured (like he has been for 75% of his career, that's why he dropped the long jump 6 years ago) and it honestly would've been more suspect if he clocked a 9.9 or 10.0 just 10days after getting a back injury. His Powell like running style requires an insane amount of power, even for sprint standards, and he clearly couldn't push or tap the ground past his drive phase.
He had the same kind of problem last season and got mediocre perfs because of that (10.12 in the italian champs in june) but was still able to drop a solid time (9.95) to win the European champs mid august while still recovering from an hamstring injury. So i wouldn't completely write him off for this season yet
One thing I don't think a lot of people factor in when we look at suspicion of doping, is how much post "peak" injury is a tell-tale. Guys who make massive jumps like Jacobs did - especially at older ages and then spend the rest of their careers injured are classic obvious candidates.
Right now do I think he's doping? Seriously doubt it - primarily because that would be idiotic. He crossed the line first at the Olympic Games and that title alone is making him 25-30k in euros per start plus whatever PUMA is giving him as the OC and money out of Italy. But this is exactly why these guys are injury prone the rest of their careers. It's like putting an F1 engine in a regular automobile. Yeah you can drive it a few times and it will go pretty damn fast, but after a while that chassis is just going to implode under the torque and stress it was never meant to be put under - just like a human body. And all of this magnified in the 100m where the muscular/structural makeup of the body is obviously pushed to its absolute limit. I don't know why that's so implausible to people and as mentioned, this pattern is very common.