Kim Collins believes 2012 could see the first race in history with eight men running the 100m under 10 seconds.
The veteran is confident that Olympic year will create 100m history
Kim Collins, former world champion, believes 2012 could see the first race in history with eight men running the 100 metres in under 10 seconds.
There have already been eight different men who have broken the 10-second barrier this season, with three of them doing so earlier this month in the same race in Doha.
The Olympic final in 2008 saw six men run under 10 seconds, including Usain Bolt setting a then-world record of 9.69secs. The same feat was also achieved in the 1991 World Championship final and at the 2011 Prefontaine Classic in Oregon.
Although veteran Collins acknowledges he is not capable of keeping pace with the likes of Bolt if the Jamaican gets near his current world record of 9.58s, the 36-year-old believes the rising standards in an Olympic year mean history could soon be made.
Best shape
Collins, who won the world 100m title for St Kitts and Nevis in 2003 in Paris, said: "I think this is going to be the year where we see eight men under 10 seconds in the same race, so keep watching.
"For me it's no surprise that five guys have already run under 9.9s this year. It's an Olympic year and everyone wants to be in the best shape possible."
In Ostrava last Friday, Collins finished second to Bolt and will take on the triple Olympic champion again in Thursday's Diamond League meeting in Rome. Asafa Powell, former world record holder, is also in the field.
Powell added: "I'm not here to compete against Bolt, I'm here to run very fast. The finish line is my target, not Bolt or anyone else."
Asked how he would beat Bolt, Powell said: "It's simple. If you want to beat Bolt and he runs 9.79, you run 9.78. If he runs 10 seconds flat, you run 9.9. That's it."
