Another one: Sprinter Andre De Grasse through to 200-metre final with Bolt
RIO DE JANEIRO — Andre De Grasse cruised into another final at the Rio Olympics.
The star sprinter from Markham, Ont., finished alongside reigning champion Usain Bolt of Jamaica in the men’s 200-metre semifinals on Wednesday during Day 12 of competition.
De Grasse finished in 19.80 seconds, besting his own record of 19.88 seconds set at the 2015 Pan American Games in Toronto. Bolt finished slightly ahead of De Grasse in 19.78, the two rivals smiling and joking as they crossed the finish line. Toronto’s Aaron Brown did not advance to the 200-metre final after finishing his heat in seventh.
“I always want to push him (Bolt), and I feel like I have a great shot to get on the podium again,” De Grasse said. “My coach (Stuart McMillan) told me to go out there and try to make him use as much energy as possible in this race, because I think you’re going to do a better job recovering than he is.