BEIJING — The 100-meter race billed as a morality play won’t come, if it comes, until Sunday night’s final in the Bird’s Nest Stadium.
Saturday’s preliminaries turned out to be relatively free of drama free for Usain Bolt and Justin Gatlin.
They ran in separate heats on the opening night of the world track and field championships. Bolt (no surprise) got the bigger ovation. Gatlin (no big surprise in light of his performances this season) had the faster time.
Gatlin advanced to the semifinals by winning his heat by a wide margin in 9.