Usain Bolt faces world champion at Olympic trials

Usain Bolt, Yohan Blake and Asafa Powell head the 100m field at the Jamaican National Senior Championships.

Only the top three from 51 sprinters – including seven who have run under 10 seconds – will qualify for London 2012.

Relay gold medalists Michael Frater and Nesta Carter, Commonwealth Games 100m winner Lerone Clarke and 2011 world 200m semi-finalist Mario Forsythe are all bidding to make Friday’s final.

Nearly 400 are competing for around 60 Jamaican athletics places at London.

Also included in the 100m in Kingston are World University Games 100m champion Jacques Harvey, World University Games 200m runner-up Jason Young and Winston Barnes.

Reigning world record-holder Bolt won Olympic gold in the 100m, 200m and 4x100m relay in 2008 at Beijing, while Blake is reigning world champion and Powell a former world record holder.

Bolt has run the two fastest times in the world so far this year, 9.76 in Rome last month and 9.79 earlier this month at Oslo.

Bolt and Blake also race each other in the 200m Olympic trial on Sunday evening.

World University Games gold medallist Hansel Parchment will face Dwight Thomas and US college champion Andrew Riley in the 110m hurdles.

2008 Olympic 100m champion Shelly Ann Fraser-Pryce and two time Olympic 200m winner Veronica Campbell Brown will compete against each in the women’s 100m Olympic trials.