American sprinter Justin Gatlin failed to reach the final in the men's 200-meter at the 2016 Summer Olympics on Wednesday, marking a disappointing end to his individual competition at this year's Games.
Gatlin finished third in his heat in the semifinals, and only the top two advance to Thursday's final, per Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports.
Michael Lee of The Vertical provided his initial take on how Gatlin appeared to approach the race:
Justin Gatlin thought he could cruise in the 200M like Usain Bolt...& got smoked. #Rio2016
— Michael Lee (@MrMichaelLee) August 18, 2016
Although the 100-meter has been Gatlin's more successful race at the Olympic level, and this year he won the silver, outside expectations were still high heading into the 200.