- The Olympics men’s 100-meter dash semifinals and final take place this weekend in Tokyo. Trayvon Bromell snuck into the semifinal but Ronnie Baker won his heat
- Andre De Grasse showed well in the heats but the semifinals and final expect to be a different story
- Check out the odds, analysis, and betting predictions below
The men’s 100-meter dash is one of the headline events of the Olympics. The semifinal heats start on Sunday, August 1st at 6:15 am ET. Now, the race for the gold medal begins at 8:50 am ET on Sunday.
All events take place at Olympic Stadium in Tokyo. They will be live or streamed on NBC, NBCSN, NBC Olympics, and Peacock.
Here are the odds for the men’s 100-meter dash along with the best bet.
Men’s 100m Odds To Win Gold
| Runner | Odds |
|---|---|
| Trayvon Bromell (USA) | +275 |
| Ronnie Baker (USA) | +275 |
| Andre De Grasse (CAN) | +275 |
| Akani Simbine (RSA) | +600 |
| Lamont-Marcell Jacobs (ITA) | +800 |
| Fred Kerley (USA) | +1200 |
| Zharnel Hughes (GBR) | +2000 |
| Yohan Blake (JAM) | +3500 |
All odds as of July 31 at DraftKings
Andre De Grasse Asserts Himself in Pre-Race Heats
The heats featured a few surprises but the one that stuck out a little more came as one of the fastest times was from Canada. Andre De Grasse was a bronze medal winner in Rio and alluded to in our preview as a possible medal contender again.
TRACK: 🇨🇦Andre De Grasse does what he needs to do in the heats, posting a time of 9.91.
He's into the semi-final of the men's 100m.
Write this down Canada: 6:15am, August 1. #Tokyo2020 #TeamCanada pic.twitter.com/wOWLPjguJ9
— Ben Steiner (@BenSteiner00) July 31, 2021
There are few runners quite like De Grasse in the field. He is one of the few runners out there who almost could keep up with Usain Bolt — at least for 50 meters anyway. Most of the heats were unusually slow and that posed a problem for some runners. Reece Prescod of Great Britain did not even qualify for the semifinals. Some runners just get caught in that pace and never truly recover.
That was not the case for De Grasse. He did what he had to do in the heat and ran his race. The Canadian let up a fraction.
Can De Grasse contend for a gold medal? It is possible but not likely. A medal, however, looks likely given the form he has displayed this year.
Trayvon Bromell Barely Qualifies for Semifinal
The American Trayvon Browell ran a 10.05 in his heat and finished just fourth, which had to be a concern to many, considering his form and how he fared previously. Few expected him to look a bit heavy but Bromell was just that in his heat. Imagine if the “world’s fastest man” had been knocked out in the heats. It nearly happened.
The men's 100m heats were unusually slow. Trayvon Bromell, the fastest man in the world this year ran 10.05 and just Q'd for the next heat. The next round will be much faster. I bet ya #Olympics
— Rob Williams (@LimestoneBlak) July 31, 2021
Again, runners sometimes forget the flow of a race and every one of the heats just seemed off when it came to speed. That will not be the case in the semifinal and final. Bromell needs to get in that gear.
This is a runner who has won 15 of his last 16 races while running a 9.77 and then a 9.8 to win the U.S. Olympic Trials. The speed is there.
He will not sneak into the final running as the American did in his heat. The wind was not an issue and does not expect to be one on Sunday.
Others to Watch and Best Bet
Fred Kerley ran a 9.97 in the same heat that De Grasse was in and looked to have quite a bit left for Sunday. Again, that fifth heat seemed to have a better start than the others. Despite that, Marcell Jacobs of Italy also looked in excellent form as he ran a 9.94 to win his heat. Then, there is Ronnie Baker.
Ronnie Baker after winning his 100m heat in 10.03:
"It felt easy. I look back at the screen after the race, & just honestly felt like a stroll, a casual stroll. Tomorrow, obviously, got to just turn it up a little bit. So this is just to get the nerves out, get my feet under me.”— Steve Wilson (@SteveWilson_LDN) July 31, 2021
Baker may be a sneaky runner to watch again. He is the only one to beat Bromell recently. Baker pulled that off in Monaco by running a 9.85 with no wind aid. He ran a 10.03 to win his heat but did coast.
The hardest thing is to base form off qualifying but overall it may be Baker who has the best shot to beat Bromell. Yohan Blake of Jamaica could be one to watch as a potential sleeper. Also, do not forget Fred Kerley who has a personal best of 9.86 seconds. However, our pick is Ronnie Baker to win gold.
The Pick: Ronnie Baker (Team USA at +275), Longshot: Yohan Blake (Jamaica at +3500), Fred Kerley (Team USA at +1200)
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