Up until last week, Trayvon Bromell looked like nearly as big of an Olympic 100m favorite as Usain Bolt at recent Games.
But between two meets, the picture became less clear.
First, South African Akani Simbine clocked an African record 9.84 seconds last Tuesday in Hungary to rank second in the world this year behind Bromell, who ran 9.77 and 9.80 in June.
Then, on Friday in Monaco, Bromell did not get his customary exemplary start. Some said he stumbled out of the blocks, though it’s hard to tell on video how much he was hindered.