Asaf Powell is known to all athletics enthusiasts. His name is associated not only with high-profile sports records, but also with scandals.
Biography
This famous athlete was born on 11/23/1982 in the Spanish Town in Jamaica in a large family. He had five older brothers. He grew up in a family with very strict rules and principles. His parents - William and Sislyn Powell - were reverends of the local church. They have always been supporters of strict discipline, and therefore forbade their children from attending entertainment events such as concerts or dances.
Study and sport
From early childhood, Asaf became interested in sports. From the age of 9 he was actively involved in athletics in the small village of Linstead, located in St. Catherine County. In high school Charlmount, the future champion overtook almost all of his peers at different sprint distances. Most of all he liked to run on 100, 200 and 400 meters. Asafa Powell, whose photo is now known all over the world, was at first busy with getting a good higher education, and not with a sports career. At the insistence of his parents, he entered Kingston University. He remained in the capital of Jamaica, despite the fact that he was offered a scholarship at several American universities. He spent his student days in the company of parents and brothers.
At this time, he attended church weekly and acted like an exemplary son. One of his brothers, Donovan, was a participant in the Olympic Games. Over time, he became Asafa's manager. The future champion was a member of the Maximising Velocity and Power athletics club, which operated at Kingston University of Technology. There, his coach was Stephen Francis.
Breakthrough in sports career
In 2004, the young sprinter became the fifth in the finals of the Athens Olympic Games at a distance of 100 m. After this event, he took first place in the track and field finals, which was held in Monaco, at one hundred and two hundred meters. In 2006, the Jamaican won the Commonwealth Games held in Melbourne (Australia) and the athletics finals in Stuttgart. The future Olympic champion won the IAAF Gold League (annual track and field competition series, held from 1998 to 2009) at a distance of 100 m. In the track and field final, held on 22.09.2007 in Stuttgart (Germany), Asaf won first place in distance 100 m
At the 2007 World Athletics Championships in Osaka, Japan, Powell won the silver medal in the 4 x 100 m relay and the bronze medal in the 100 m distance. In autumn 2007, at the IAAF Grand Prix tournament in Italian in the city of Rieti, a young Jamaican set a new world record in the 100m race. He covered this distance in just 9.74 seconds. So gradually, Powell became one of the most beloved athletes of the new generation.
Personal records
As an outstanding sprinter, Asaf Powell was talked about when he became Olympic champion in 2008. This significant event for the Jamaican athlete occurred on August 22. After just a few weeks, sports commentators around the world again reported on Asaf Powell. The record set by him at a distance of 100 m in 2007 was improved by him by 2 seconds. After that, the Jamaican runner achieved several more victories in sprint distances.
Asaf Powell will always be remembered, even if he can no longer show outstanding results in athletics. This is due to the fact that he set an incredible personal record in running at a hundred-meter distance. He covered 100 m in 9.72 s. In the entire history of running, only 3 people ran this distance faster than Powell: Tyson Gay, Usain Bolt, Johan Blake.
Other personal records of a Jamaican athlete include the following results at different distances:
• 50 m - 5.64 s;
• 60 m - 6.50 s;
• 200 m - 19.90 s;
• 400 m - 45.96 s;
• 4 x 100 m - 37.10 s.
Asafa Powell's Roman Vacations
Athletes, like movie stars, are becoming the subject of close attention of journalists and fans. Many of them perfectly remember the “Roman embarrassment” of Asafa Powell. The Olympic records of many athletes were made arrogant and conceited. So the Jamaican sprinter, according to many members of the press, picked up a "star disease". So, in the Roman Olympic stadium, an athlete with a beautiful figure defiantly posed during a warm-up at the warm-up field. He did this, waiting for the start of the race in the new stage of the Golden League. At the same time, stone statues of ancient Roman gladiators were placed around him, with which he made worthy competition. On the eve of this semi-final race, Powell was belligerent, making it clear to everyone that he does not lose his desire to regain the title of the best sprinter in the world again.
Asaf started leisurely, but by the middle of the distance he accelerated well, and 30 meters before the finish he was ahead of all the runners in the whole building. Spectators and commentators at that moment were confident in Powell's victory in this race, but about 15 meters before the finish line he suddenly stopped and let 4 athletes get ahead of himself. Representatives of the press did their best to find out at least some information about the causes of the incident, but they were unable to communicate with the sprinter. From the vague explanations of his manager, the correspondents concluded that Asafa was injured and stopped fighting for a place in the finals, having arranged an unplanned “Roman vacation” for himself. In fact, the true causes of the incident were not voiced by the athlete or his representatives, which gave rise to many different rumors about the causes of this embarrassment.
Highest achievements
In addition to winning the Beijing Summer Olympics (2008), Asaf Powell has other outstanding achievements. So, he is the world champion in the 4 x 100 m relay. The Jamaican team set new world and Olympic records, breaking all stages of the relay in 37.1 s. This is largely due to the excellent result of Asafa Powell.
The 2009 championship, held in Berlin (Germany), brought him personally not only a gold medal, but also worldwide fame. On it, he became a bronze medalist at a distance of 100 m and won gold in the relay 4 x 100 m in the national team of Jamaica. In 2011, the sprinter became the winner of the IAAF Diamond League in the hundred-meter race.
Disqualification
In April 2014, all sports media started talking about Asaf Powell again. Disqualification is a serious punishment for an athlete that can permanently destroy his image. It was this nuisance that befell Powell. The Jamaican Anti-Doping Committee Disciplinary Commission has punished the illustrious sprinter for doping. It turned out to be the banned drug "Methylsineprin" (oxylofrin), which refers to amphetamine-type stimulants. He was part of the approved food supplement Ephiphany D1, which was taken by the athlete. Powell was suspended from the competition for 1.5 years. The period of his disqualification was counted from 06/21/2013.
Physical data
In sports circles, everyone knows about Asaf Powell as a person with excellent physical characteristics. So, with a growth of 190 cm, it weighs 88 kg. Asafa has an ideal body with well-developed muscles. It is a tidbit for advertisers promoting sportswear and men's underwear.
Interesting Facts
Asafa Powell loves cars. He often says that if he hadn’t had a sports career, he would have worked as a car mechanic. At leisure, the sprinter is fond of car racing and even builds a speed car.
Another interesting feature of Asafa is his ability to calmly accept defeat. He is practically not angry, and his family and fans motivate him to achieve records and medals.
To maintain his ideal figure in proper form, Powell adheres to a kind of "chicken diet". In his daily diet, there must be chicken meat.