It sure takes thunder to be Bolt’s rival and Tyson Gay tops the list. The 28-year-old American sprinter was to run his 100m in the IAAF World Championships in Eugene, Oregon, withdrew due to an injured hip.

Hip injury leaves Tyson Gay out for the whole year

He was already going to miss the Championships to be held in South Korea next month, he however decided he needed to get back in a healthy shape and withdrew early as he warmed up for the US Time Trials.

Following an arthroscopic procedure in his hip, Gay will now concentrate on the coming Olympics. Gay, during his interview following his judgment, said “it’s pretty painful running in pain”. He had been bandaging up for quite some time however he decided to take rest, recover and train for the upcoming Olympics.

Gay has had a remarkable season having timed 9.79 seconds for the 100m run, earlier this year, having made it the fastest time recorded for this year. Earlier, his recorded time was 9.69 seconds, right after Bolt’s 9.58 seconds.

Speaking to The Associated Press, he said “I’m real bummed about not running, period. It’s all I know, it’s all I love. It’s what I study every day.”

The team to run 4×100 meters could have included Tyson Gay if he had recovered, however his fitness was worsening due to the recurring problem in his right hip and he had to drop out to rest. Marc Philippon, Gay’s doctor, says that it will take about six to nine weeks for Gay to recover and start running again.

Gay’s fitness had been deteriorating since 2007, after he won the 100m and 200m title that was held in Osaka. In 2008, he was injured at the Olympic trials after his 200m run and was not able to go for the 100m finals in the Beijing Games as well.  The year after that, he won a silver, losing the gold to Bolt, in the World Championships in Berlin and pulled out of the 200m race.

Bolt will need to train harder as the Olympics are in the near sight. His decision to out of the run for the championships this time would benefit him to focus on his fitness and prepare for the big titles coming up next year.

If Gay had been fit and continued his running, he would have met Bolt at the championships in Daegu, which was scheduled for later part of this year. This would come as a relief for Bolt who is to run his 200m race today.

Tags: Eugene, IAAF World Championships, Olympics, Oregon, Tyson Gay