Former 100m record holder Asafa Powell has insisted he remains in great shape to compete despite being dismissed as an 'old guy' by a competitor at the Boston Indoor Grand Prix on Saturday.
In his prime, Powell cast an enviable figure for many sprinters, his picture-perfect running style taking him to a world record time of 9.77 in 2005 and then lowering that mark with a time of 9.74 in 2007. The Jamaican went on to clock the most sub-10 second times for any sprinter with a total of 98.
In recent years, Powell, who has been plagued by injuries, has struggled to reach close to such heights. On Saturday, the sprinter finished in 5th place in the men’s 60m, with a time of 6.71, expectedly well off his best of 6.44. His efforts seemed to do little to impress United States sprinter Demek Kemp. The 23-year-old South Carolina representative took the event in a personal best time of 6.50.
"Feels great," Kemp said of the run.
"I had some good competition. Glad to have a personal record,” he added.
He clearly did not feel Powell was among them, however.
"He's an old guy," Kemp said when asked about competing against the Jamaican.
For his part, Powell, who insisted the run was about testing his legs, however, claims he is feeling as good as ever and is confident he should still be competing.
“I am still feeling very strong, still feeling as fast as I did years ago,” Powell told Track Alerts.
“With the entire Jamaica is motivating me, and with that kind of support, it’s hard to give up,” he added.