Yohan Blake
Sport: Track and Field
Nation: Jamaica
DOB: December 26, 1989
Career Highlights: If anyone is going to challenge superstar Usain Bolt in London, it's probably going to be the reigning world champion in the
100 meters. Blake, now 22, became the youngest man ever to hold that title last year after Bolt - his Jamaican countryman,
friend and training partner - was disqualified because of a false start. Blake, though, didn't need a technicality to beat
his mentor at the Jamaican Olympic trials, where he stunned Bolt in the 100 by 0.11 seconds with a personal-best time of 9.75
- the best in the world this year. "Nine-point-seven-five, it's awesome," Blake said. "I won the world championship, so I've
got that. Now, I'm the national champion for Jamaica, so I've got that. And now, I go into the Olympics like this." Although
that time still pales in comparison with Bolt's world record of 9.58 and Olympic record of 9.69, Blake surely sent a message
- then did it again in the 200 meters, beating Bolt in that event at trials in 19.80 seconds. He ran the second-fastest time
ever in the 200 - behind only Bolt's world record of 19.19 seconds - with a 19.26 last September. Along with Bolt, Blake was
also a member of Jamaica's world champion and world record-breaking 4x100-meter relay team in 2011, which means he'll be going
for at least three medals this summer. He and Bolt have both mentioned the possibility of chasing a fourth on the 4x400 team,
so it's likely Blake's name will be heard frequently in London.
Olympic History: None