Trayvon Bromell must figure out the cause of the Tokyo Olympics' 100m meter final. If he is to end his unlikely road to redemption, With a slow time of 10.05 seconds, the gold-medal favorite was fourth in Saturday's heat. He barely made it into the semifinals.This could be another step on his inspiring path to success. Bromwell, 26, overcame a difficult childhood in St. Petersburg, Florida and suffered a series of injuries to become the first high-school athlete to run the 100 meters under 10 seconds. Bromwell made it to Rio to the 2016 Olympic Team, but he suffered more injuries, including surgery to his Achilles and his foot. This is the death sentence for any world-class sprinter.Bromell was able to get back in top form and set the world's best times at 9.77 and 9.80. Bromell was awarded the title Fastest Man in the World when he arrived in Tokyo, and Usain Bolt had retired.On Saturday night in Tokyo Bromell ran in Lane 7. He started slowly and was lost at the 60-meter mark. Enoch Adegoke from Nigeria finished second, finishing at 9.98. Femo Ogunode from Qatar came second in heat 10.02 and Zharnel Hughes of Great Britain third in 10.04.Bromell said to NBC that he didn't know what had gone wrong."I don't believe my form was good. My running form was not up. I honestly don't know. My form was not where it should have been."He told reporters at Olympic Stadium that he was calm a few minutes later. It was a feeling that I can't describe. It doesn't seem like I pushed myself enough, and that will be what my coach is mad about."The game's name in the first round is "survive and advance" -- and to save energy. The semifinals will be decided Sunday by the top three finishers from each heat. Bromell looked terrible, but he was able move on.Canada's Andre de Grasse won the first round in 9.91 seconds. Lamont Marcel Jacobs from Italy was next at 9.94. American Fred Kerley ran 9.97 and Ronnie Baker won his heat with 10.03. Sunday's semifinals will begin at 6:15 a.m. ET. The finals will be at 8:50 AM.Bromell's life has been a long one, so it would be foolish not to count him out. He told The Associated Press that he has always been someone who puts himself as the underdog.ResultsHis single mother struggled to keep the lights on at their apartment growing up. According to him, his neighborhood was full of violence and instances of police brutality. Before graduating from high school, he had broken both his knees and fractured his hip. He injured his ankle during training camp for Rio Games. He finished eighth in the finals with a 10.06 time. Bromell attempted to gut his way through 100-meter relay, but was stopped by the track and had to be assisted off the track. The U.S. team was disqualified due to a poor handoff.Bromell was unable to recover from the second surgery and has expressed concern about his future. After switching to Rana Reider as his coach, Bromell began to make progress. She was so rigorous in her workouts that Bromell sometimes had difficulty remembering what happened. He was running faster than ever by the beginning of the year: 9.77 in June, which was the seventh fastest time, and 9.80 to win at the Olympic trials.According to Timothy S. Johnson, an orthopedic surgeon at the National Sports Medicine Institute, Bromell is likely to be the first 100-meter runner to resume world-class form following Achilles surgery.Johnson stated, "It's an incredible feat, and his mental ability to go through all of that must be amazing."Justin Gatlin, an American male who won gold in the Olympic 100 in 2004, was the last to do so. The Reign of Bolt followed -- three consecutive Olympic wins in the 100, 200 and 100 for the Jamaican star and a bag of world records that culminated with an unbelievable 9.58 in 100.Although that record won't be broken in Tokyo, athletes will notice how fast the Olympic Stadium track and the improvements in shoe technology. It might take 9.8 seconds to win. Elaine Thompson-Herah from Jamaica won gold in the women's 100. She ran 10.61 seconds to break Florence Griffith Joyner’s Olympic record.Bolt said that Bolt is "showing great promise" in his race to become the next Olympic champion. Sunday will mark the beginning of Bromell's incredible journey.
