Gay was suffering from a nagging groin issue and had not slept a wink the night before he ran 9.69 in the 100 meters of the Shanghai Golden Grand Prix in 2009.
Tyson Gay, the fastest man in American history, recently reflected on the extraordinary 2009 season that saw him clock a personal best of 9.69 seconds at the Shanghai Golden Grand Prix.
This performance catapulted him into history, matching Usain Bolt’s Olympic-winning time from Beijing 2008 and tying Yohan Blake as the second-fastest man ever. What made this feat even more remarkable was that Gay was battling a severe groin injury, which had plagued him for months leading up to the race.
In the months prior, Gay had competed at the 2009 World Championships in Berlin, where he posted an impressive 9.71 seconds in the 100m final—setting a new U.S. record and securing his place as the third-fastest sprinter in history. Despite the personal achievement, Gay was left in second place, behind Usain Bolt’s world-record shattering 9.58 seconds.
Gay recalled the difficulty of that race on The Powells YouTube channel, saying, “I injured myself in May, and after Rome, my groin was completely finished.” By the time he arrived in Berlin, his injury had worsened to the point where he could barely push off the blocks. “I was starting on one wheel—I couldn’t push at all, like, zero,” he admitted, explaining how he fought through the pain to deliver one of the most remarkable performances of his career.
Even with his body failing him, Gay’s resolve never wavered. Those around him, including his manager’s assistant, urged him to stop and rest. “They said, ‘You made enough money this season, why tear your body up?’” But Gay refused to back down. “I just had to see it through,” he said. “It was already torn—I just had to finish what I started.”
By the time Gay reached Shanghai, most of his competitors had packed up for the season, and many coaches had left as well. Alone in a foreign city, Gay spent the night before the race out with his friend, British long jumper Jade Johnson, inadvertently staying awake all night. When race day dawned, Gay was exhausted. “I had no sleep—literally 24 hours awake,” he remembered. “My eyes were red, and I was tired, doing my drills half-heartedly.”
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However, his legendary coach John Smith offered some final words of motivation. “You never know when it could be your day,” Smith told him, encouraging Gay to push through the fatigue. And something clicked. “I started my warm-up and turned it on a little,” Gay said.
In the call room, standing beside Jamaican rival Asafa Powell and watching fellow American Carmelita Jeter run a blistering 10.64 in the women’s 100m, Gay felt the energy. Despite a slow start in the race, he gave it everything he had. “I had a horrible start,” he confessed, “but I just thought, ‘Whatever I’ve got left, I’m going to give it all.’”
To Gay’s astonishment, he crossed the finish line in first place with a time of 9.69 seconds, matching Bolt’s mark and solidifying his status as one of the greatest sprinters of all time. “It felt good,” he reflected. “I don’t even know the right word for how you run a PR when you’re not feeling great. But I just decided in that moment, ‘I’m going to do it,’ and I did.”
Despite his groin injury and physical exhaustion, Tyson Gay’s Shanghai performance remains a defining moment in his career. It showcased not only his extraordinary speed but also his mental toughness and refusal to give up, no matter the odds. Even when his body was far from its best, Gay proved he could still compete with the very best in the world.
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