Wallace Spearmon is one of those few sprint stars who shared the track with some of the legendary athletes for the most part of his career. Those adversaries included not only Team Jamaica’s Usain Bolt, Asafa Powell, and Yohan Blake, but also his own Team USA teammates Justin Gatlin and Tyson Gay. The one-time world champion recounted this specific event on Justin Gatlin’s Ready Set Go podcast on YouTube.
Aside from the competition, Spearmon discusses how he has been criticized throughout his career for his running style, with fans comparing him to Tyson Gay and always wanting him to run like his Team USA partner.
However, the one-time world champion had his own style of running that he never wanted to abandon. When he was compared to his competition, he felt confused, as he states:
“Usain Bolt 9.58, Justin Gatlin 9.7, Tyson Gay 9.7, Yohan Blake 9.7—my PR is 9.9, so even if I run as hard as I can, I’m not going to be with them off the curve. What y’all talking about? What do y’all see that I don’t see?”
Spearmon always wanted the critics to help him understand where he was missing in pace because even after altering techniques, he was no closer to those track legends.
This is not the first time the one-time world champion has mentioned the prime Jamaican team led by Bolt; he previously recommended his ideal relay team to upset the indomitable side.
Wallace Spearmon’s Dream Team USA 4x100M Relay Squad
At the 2012 London Olympics, Team Jamaica, consisting of Usain Bolt, Nesta Carter, Michael Frater, and Yohan Blake, set a world record of 36.84 seconds in the 4×100-meter relay. Until now, no team has come close to breaking the record, and as the Olympic season approaches, Wallace Spearmon introduces his dream Team USA, to vanquish their greatest adversaries.
He assigns Justin Gatlin the starting position, himself the second leg, Tyson Gay the third leg, and Noah Lyles the final leg. Spearmon understands that Gatlin has always had a great starting pace, as Rodney A. Green also agrees in the podcast, and he is confident in himself that he will carry the pace to Gay, who will finally pass the baton to the six-time world champion, who has always had great finishing 100-meter splits.
