Liu Xiang’s race for the day was over.
After his massage, Chen Yu told him to head back to the hotel first.
Having broken the Olympic record today, it was easy to imagine how many reporters would be clamoring to interview him.
It would be impossible to avoid them all.
His run today was a magnificent new page in the history of Chinese track and field.
But Liu Xiang wasn’t in a hurry to leave. Instead, he stayed behind to watch Bolt’s first heat.
"What, you really think he can break the world record today?" Chen Yu asked with a smile.
In his daily training, Bolt had never run under 19.5 seconds.
So, in theory, it was impossible for him to run under 19.3 seconds.
That was a full 0.2 seconds—a massive, chasm-like gap for a top athlete and for a world record.
The body’s limits are what they are. They aren’t so easy to break through.
Liu Xiang nodded and added, "Dr. Chen, you should know that getting into peak form isn’t easy. A lot of the time, it’s a rare opportunity you can’t force."
Some athletes might only have that one moment of glory in their entire lives.
"Usain has been training for so long, and I really think he’s incredibly talented."
Having been around so many top athletes, Liu Xiang was keenly aware that differences in race and individual talent were very real.
Just like Bolt.
When he first met Bolt, he was tall and skinny.
But in the last year or two, it was as if Bolt had been pumped full of air; he’d gotten both taller and much more muscular.
He could bulk up by eating a ton, then quickly turn that weight into muscle through training.
Most importantly, he could also adapt to his body’s changes with incredible speed, converting the new muscle into real strength and explosive power.
Liu Xiang couldn’t even imagine how powerful that kind of talent was; it was the kind of gift he dreamed of having.
"So, Dr. Chen, physically, he’s ready."
"As for his mentality..."
Liu Xiang paused. The Bolt he knew was more confident than he was, always possessing a positive, upward-looking mindset and an unshakable belief in himself.
For example, right now, seeing that Liu Xiang had broken the Olympic record, Bolt would immediately think, ’I can do that too.’
That kind of mentality was rare, and it was the main reason Liu Xiang thought Bolt might just be able to create a miracle.
The body is the foundation, but mindset is just as crucial.
He himself was more introverted and needed victories to build confidence, but Bolt was different. He was born with more than enough of it.
To put it a bit more poetically, Bolt was a born king, overflowing with a commanding presence.
When your mentality is strong enough, it’s not impossible to break your own limits and create a miracle!
Chen Yu watched the TV for a moment, then said, "Whether he can or not, we’ll know once he runs."
At 9:50, in the fourth heat, it was Bolt’s turn.
The wind speed on-site was a 0.7 m/s tailwind.
The boost from a wind speed like this was almost negligible.
In all of human history, only 57 people had ever run the 200m in under 20 seconds.
So, as the youngest athlete to run under 20 seconds, Bolt was positioned in lane four as a seeded runner.
On camera, he methodically warmed up, adjusted his starting blocks, and made his final preparations.
As the camera panned over him, it was impossible to tell if he was nervous.
However, in the final moments, when the athletes were being introduced and the camera focused on his face, he raised a hand to acknowledge the crowd and suddenly broke into a wide grin, flashing a set of pearly white teeth.
"This kid."
In the prep area, Chen Yu smiled too.
’He doesn’t seem nervous at all.’
By 9:53, Bolt was ready.
In the stands, not many people were paying attention to this heat.
In the press box, many reporters were still discussing Liu Xiang’s breaking of the Olympic record.
It was just a 200-meter preliminary heat; it didn’t draw that much attention.
But at this moment, crouched at the starting line, Bolt lifted his head slightly and looked ahead.
There was no one beside him.
The 100-meter is a battle against your opponents.
But the 200-meter is a battle against yourself.
Bolt took a deep breath, his mind clearing of everything else.
The starting pistol fired, and all the runners burst from the blocks.
Twenty seconds. So fast you barely have time to think.
Chen Yu stared intently at the television.
In the 100-meter, it’s a straight line, so it’s obvious at a glance who’s faster and who’s slower.
But the 200-meter is different. The starting positions are staggered, and there’s a curve, so you can’t really tell who’s fastest with just a glance.
But as for the start, Chen Yu felt Bolt hadn’t made any mistakes. It was a textbook start, as if measured with a ruler.
And intuitively, it felt like Bolt was the fastest one out there.
But that was normal. None of the other runners in his heat could break 20 seconds; they weren’t in the same league as Bolt at all.
His only opponent was still himself.
"He’s accelerating!"
Liu Xiang exclaimed beside him.
After a very brief start, Bolt began to charge, his speed increasing rapidly.
"Isn’t he pushing it too hard?"
Liu Xiang said urgently.
Although the 200-meter is an anaerobic event, you still have to manage your stamina.
The techniques for the straight and the curve are completely different. On the straightaway after the curve, your body is already at speed, so you can run all out.
But after 150 meters, the body hits its limit, and you have to think about how to maintain your speed.
The 100-meter is full of technique, and the 200-meter is no different.
But Liu Xiang could clearly feel that Bolt was making his move too early.
Chen Yu noticed it too. Bolt had gone out incredibly hard right from the beginning.
And coming out of the curve, the result was already obvious. Bolt had left the others far behind.
More importantly, as he entered the straight, it was as if the final restraint on his body had been lifted. He was running faster and faster.
The advantage of his height and long legs became fully apparent as he opened his stride and accelerated madly.
He was already tall with a long stride, but in the final hundred meters, his stride became even more astonishing.
Chen Yu had recorded him with a high-speed camera before; his average stride length was over two and a half meters.
Not to mention his extremely fast cadence.
At that moment, Bolt was like a yellow bolt of lightning, leaving his opponents further and further behind.
Four meters, five meters, even six meters!
While everyone’s mind was blank, with no time to think, Bolt had already crossed the finish line first with an incredible lead.
The time on the television screen froze.
"19.43 seconds!"
Liu Xiang cried out in astonishment.
There was shock, but also regret.
He was shocked that Bolt had surpassed his own limits and broken 19.5 seconds, but regretful that there was still a considerable gap to the world record.
0.11 seconds. That probably wasn’t going to be so easy to overcome.
Chen Yu sighed softly.
In the end, there was no miracle.
On the TV, the camera followed Bolt.
He slowed to a stop, not taking a few celebratory jogs, but turning his head to look at the timer.
After seeing the final time, a look of clear disappointment appeared on his face.
The camera faithfully captured his furrowed brow and pursed lips, an expression of dissatisfaction.
19.43 seconds. That was a gold-medal-level time.
And, barring any surprises, it was also likely the best time anyone had run in the men’s 200m so far this year.
Yet in the face of such an achievement, Bolt actually showed an expression of dissatisfaction!
Listening to the whispers and low-voiced discussions around him, Chen Yu was just about to go find Bolt to congratulate him when he felt a tap on his shoulder.
He turned his head and saw a middle-aged black man.
"Trevor?" Chen Yu frowned slightly.
This gentleman was named Trevor Graham, a famous coach in the world of American track and field.
He was Jamaican, and had been a well-known athlete himself, even representing Jamaica in the ’88 Olympics.
Later, he transitioned to coaching and made quite a name for himself in the United States.
The famous sprinting couple, Montgomery and Jones, were both his disciples.
The super rookie Justin Gatlin, who had just defeated Green and Powell in the 100-meter dash, was also his disciple.
But Chen Yu didn’t have a good impression of him.
Because Chen Yu had exposed the steroid tetrahydrogestrinone, the sprinting couple had been disgraced, their gold medals revoked, and their reputations ruined.
And as their coach, Graham was naturally caught in the whirlwind of public opinion.
The couple claimed Graham had provided them with the performance-enhancing drugs, while Graham vehemently denied it.
To this day, the United States Anti-Doping Agency still hadn’t found any concrete evidence to prove Graham was at fault.
But any fool could figure out whether there was a problem or not.
’You’re their coach, with them day in and day out. To say you didn’t know your own athletes were using performance-enhancing drugs is a joke.’
So his reputation was already tarnished, but not completely destroyed.
"Chen, let’s have a word," Graham said in a low voice, a grin on his face.
Chen Yu ignored him.
’We’re not the same kind of people. There’s nothing to talk about.’
"Come on, just over there." Graham wasn’t giving up. He grabbed Chen Yu and started pulling him to the edge of the crowd.
With so many people around, Chen Yu didn’t want to make a scene. He hesitated for a moment before following.
Just outside the crowd, seeing no one was nearby, Graham first cracked a smile. Then, he shot a look at Liu Xiang in the crowd and said cheerfully, "Chen, first of all, congratulations. That Chinese guy, and Bolt... they should both be considered your disciples."
"For them to get results like this, it’s all thanks to you."
"They always say I’m the best track and field coach in the world, but I think you’re the best."
He gave a thumbs-up, his face a mask of fawning flattery.
Anyone would like to hear compliments, but Chen Yu had no interest in Graham’s.
In fact, hearing them just made him feel disgusted.
"What do you really want to say?" Chen Yu asked in a low, serious voice.
He really couldn’t figure out why this guy was looking for him.
’Surely he’s not going to ask me to testify for him, to clear him of suspicion.’
Regarding the doping issue, Chen Yu had only provided the sample; he had never paid attention to the subsequent investigation.
Moreover, Chen Yu had no evidence to prove Graham was innocent.
Graham looked left and right, confirming no one was around, and suddenly lowered his voice. "Chen, what kind of drugs are you giving them? Can you tell me?"
Chen Yu froze. ’This guy...’
Seeing Chen Yu’s expression, Graham let out a sly chuckle. "Chen, you don’t have to hide it from me."
"A Chinese person, a yellow person, breaking the Olympic record... Do you believe that?"
"And Bolt. That kid was skinny as a monkey a couple of years ago. But look at his physique now. If he wasn’t on drugs, could he have changed that much?"
"Chen, you’re a doctor. You have those kinds of resources. Did you develop some new drug yourself?"
"If that’s true, can you tell me? I have resources too. We could cooperate."
He winked at Chen Yu, giving him a ’you-know-what-I-mean’ look.
But right at that moment, Chen Yu suddenly lifted his leg and kicked Graham hard in the thigh.
He let out a pained cry and instantly fell to the ground.
"Fuck, what are you doing!"
He let out a scream like a stuck pig.
Chen Yu took aim and landed another swift kick, this time right in his face.
’What a piece of scum!’
’Accusing them of using drugs... This is the greatest insult to Liu Xiang, to Bolt, and to me!’
It was rare for Chen Yu to get angry, and even rarer for him to get so angry that he’d resort to violence.
But in this moment, looking at Graham’s despicable face, he truly couldn’t hold back.

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