Gay expects to be ready for Beijing

By Gene Cherry

EUGENE, Oregon (Reuters) - World 200 meters champion Tyson Gay said on Sunday he expected to be fully recovered from a leg injury in time for next month's Olympics.

"I'll be 100 percent for the 100 and 400 (meters) relay," Gay told NBC television at the U.S. Olympic trials.

Gay, the trials' 100 meters winner, was dumped out of the 200 meters quarter-finals on Saturday. Under strict USA Track and Field qualifying procedures, only the three finalists in an event make the American team.

Gay said he felt a twinge in his left hamstring before the race, but ran even though coach Jon Drummond suggested he reconsider if there was a problem.

"I thought it would go away once I warmed up," the world 100 and 200 meters champion said. "By the time I came off the blocks, 20, 25 meters into the race, my hamstring pulled up."

Gay's injury originally was called a severe cramp, but an MRI scan determined he suffered a mild strain in his left leg, his management company said in a statement.

"He is expected to engage in 'active rest' for up to 12-14 days, with light physical activity increasing through that period, and then resume training," the statement said.

Tyson's only confirmed pre-Olympic competition, the 100 meters meeting with former world record holder Asafa Powell in London, "is still on the schedule," the statement added.

U.S. men's Olympic coach Bubba Thornton said he was confident would be on the line when qualifying in the 100 meters begins in Beijing on August 15.

"Time is on his side," Thornton told reporters.

(Editing by Martin Petty)

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