Sorillo fails to advance in 200 final

Sorillo seemed set to progress as he held the lead at the 140-metre mark ahead of American Lashawn Merritt. Unfortunately, Sorillo faded badly and did not finish in the top two which would have ensured him a place in the final.

Winning semifinal one was Merrit in 19.94 ahead of Frenchman Christophe Lemaitre (20.01), Great Britain’s Daniel Talbot (20.35), Jamaican Nickel Ashmeade (20.31) and Sorillo.

Jamaican superstar Usain Bolt, who won the gold medal in the men’s 100m final on Sunday, had to work harder than he wanted to win semifinal two in 19.78 seconds.

In full control after rounding the bend, Bolt geared down at around 150m but Canadian Andre De Grasse was having none of it and looked to pip the legendary Jamaican to the finish line. Bolt held him off though to finish 1-2 heading into tomorrow’s final.

Speaking to ESPN after the race, the Olympic record holder admonished the 21-year-old 100m bronze medallist for his naivety.

“It was a stupid move. He may not know it now but he’s gonna feel it tomorrow. You run as fast as you need to run and conserve enough energy,” the experienced Jamaican said.

Despite running a bit harder than he desired, Bolt warned his rivals that he will be going for a world record in tonight’s final at 9.30 pm.

It was a disaster for the US and Jamaica in semifinal three as Justin Gatlin (USA) and former World champion Yohan Blake were both eliminated with shocking third and sixth place finishes respectively. Gatlin clocked 20.13 while Blake was a pedestrian 20.37 in a race won by Panama’s Alonso Edward in 20.07