Michael Norman lived up to the pre-championship hype that preceded his arrival at the ongoing IAAF World U20 Championships in Poland, showing up when it really mattered to clinch the men’s 200m title in a Championship Record (CR) of 20.17s on Day 4 of the competition.
100m Champion Noah Lyles and Norman had caused a stir at the US Olympic Trials after finishing 4th and 5th respectively in the men’s 200m final, narrowly missing out on spots to the forthcoming Olympic Games in Rio.
However it appears that the 18-year old brought the same form to Bydgoszcz, arriving the championship as the World U-20 Leader with his time of 20.14s set in Oregon earlier this month. He went on to win every race he competed in at the Zawisza Stadium, dominating his heat in 20.74s, before taking his semis in 20.71s.
The South African pair of Tlotliso Leotlela and Clarence Munyai already looked set to upstage Norman after clocking the Top 2 fastest times in the semis, with Munyai running 20.54s, while Leotlela followed in 20.58s; Norman’s time on the other hand, ranked 5th in the overall standings.
But going by the way he powered down the home straight in the final, it was evident that Norman had been saving the best for last, and had all but won the race with 100m to go. Leotlela picked Silver in 20.59s, as Jamaica’s Nigel Ellis pipped Munyai to take the Bronze in 20.63s, with the South African finishing 4th in 20.77s.
