'Final insult', 'sour taste' – Twitter reacts to Gatlin beating Bolt

LONDON: Justin Gatlin shrugged off the boos to stun Usain Bolt in the 100m final at the world championships on Saturday.

Here's how Twitter reacted:

Mail on Sunday tweeted their sports front page, condemning Gatlin who has served two doping bans.

Former England football star Michael Owen said the "total game changer" left "a sour taste in the mouth".

British athlete Kelly Sotherton commented how "no one saw that happening [and] no one wanted that to happen" either.

Ex-400m runner Dai Greene wondered how it would feel to become the world champion "only to have the fans boo you and chant the name of the guy in 3rd place", terming fans as "savage".

Former Ireland rugby skipper Brian O'Driscoll was quite heartbroken it seems, as he called Gatlin a "cheat".

Retired British swimmer Karen Pickering, who is now a TV commentator, explained how she "can deal with Bolt losing but not to a cheat".

Veteran athletics correspondent Duncan Mackay "didn't agree with booing [Gatlin] but no denying this result is disaster for sport".

Double Olympian James Ellington pondered how "the masses" do not "realise how many cheats they have cheered".

British heavyweight boxer David Haye was honoured to see the race live and called Bolt "a great man on and off the track, who has inspired many".

What the players had to say

Bolt

"It's just one of those things. My start is killing me. Normally it gets better during the rounds but it didn't come together. And that is what killed me. I felt it was there.

"It was rough. A little bit stressed. But I came out like at any other championships and did my best.

"I am not fully comfortable in those blocks but you have to work with what you have. I can't complain about that.

"He (Gatlin) is a great competitor. You have to be at your best against him. I really appreciate competing against him and he is a good person."

Gatlin

"It's not about doing it to Usain... Usain's the man. If you imagine him not being in the sport, where would it be?

"He's a character, he's funny, he's loveable, it's hard to be focused against him because you want to wish him the best and I'm happy to be one of his top rivals throughout the years.

"He's pushed me to be the runner I am today and I'm happy to be in his last race and so many races before that. The night is still his night.

"I tuned it (the boos) out through the rounds and stayed the course. I did what I had to do.

"We are rivals on the track but in the warm-up area we have a good time. He congratulated me and the first thing he said was I didn't deserve all these boos."

Yohan Blake, Bolt's team mate who finished fourth

"I'm surprised at what happened because Bolt came third – he's a man for winning and his start has been letting him down."

Coleman

"It's an historic moment... (Bolt) is somebody I looked up to when I was coming up and watching him run. He's an icon, I was just happy to be on a line with him and it's a humble feeling."

Denise Lewis, Olympic gold medallist in the heptathlon in 2000

"Justin Gatlin has been through the mill and whatever side of the fence you sit on, it is sport. He was crying and that moved me. He has worked hard. He still has to train as hard as everyone else and turn up and deliver."

COVER IMAGE: Justin Gatlin of the US celebrates with third-placed Usain Bolt of Jamaica after winning World Athletics Championships Men's 100 Metres Final at London Stadium, London, Britain, August 5, 2017. REUTERS/Dylan Martinez