Track and field still waiting for ‘Next Bolt’

LONDON - If track and field’s wildest fantasy — “The Next Usain Bolt” — really is out there somewhere, he most certainly was not in the vicinity of the world championships on Thursday.

Eight men lined up for the final of the 200 meters, trying to become the first sprinter other than the Jamaican great to win the world title at that distance since 2007.

Among them was Isaac Makwala, the Botswana runner who became a celebrity of sorts with his soap opera-like story of being barred from the track meet with an alleged case of stomach flu, only to be readmitted for his shot at glory.

There was Wayde van Niekerk, the South African who has a 400-meter title under his belt from earlier in the week and certainly possesses the running credentials to be touted as the next great sprint champion.

And then, there was the winner: Ramil Guliyev, a 27-year-old who competes for Turkey but hails originally from Azerbaijan. Guliyev, who finished last when Bolt won the 200 at last year’s Olympics, crossed the line in 20.09 seconds. It was the fourth-slowest time to win this race in the history of the championships. But Turkey’s second gold medal of the week had its perks. Moments after the win, Guliyev was on the phone with his country’s president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Christian Taylor and Will Claye repeated their 1-2 finish from the last two Olympics. Taylor won with a jump of 17.68 meters but was a bit disappointed because he didn’t hit the 22-year-old world record that he’s had his sights on for a while.

In the 400-meter hurdles, Kori Carter started outside in Lane 9 and never saw a soul on her way to gold. She crossed ahead of the Olympic champion, Dalilah Muhammad.