Blake set to explode - 'I am faster than in 2012'

RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil:

Back from several miserable years of injury setbacks and looking like a threat again, Jamaican sprinter Yohan Blake says he is faster than he was in 2012 when he won double sprint silver at the London Olympics and is not ruling out the possibility of beating Usain Bolt for gold in Rio.

"Anything is possible. I just want to go out there and listen to my coach and execute the race properly, and once I do that, I won't have any problem," Blake said.

Blake, who is competing at his first major championships since following Bolt to the finish line in the 100m and 200m at London 2012, has gone under 10 seconds in four of his seven 100m races this season.

"God is good! I feel great! I haven't felt this good in a very long time," he told The Gleaner yesterday. "Training has been going excellently. It has been great and Coach (Glen Mills) has been liking what he is seeing.

"I'm ready to go! I think I'm faster than 2012. Coach has been really excited about what I've been doing in training. Sometimes you hold back a lot to show it on the big day, and right now, that's what I'm doing. I'm waiting," he added.

"God has been working some miracles in my life ... . Sometimes you just have to believe and have faith, and that's what I did," said Blake, who noted that he has recommitted to his Christianity after first becoming a Christian as a 12-year-old.

Meanwhile, the sprinter says he is not worried by the American threat in the sprints, led by Justin Gatlin, and noted that he is not interested in putting a possible time out there, but just focusing on executing his race.

"I'm a man of surprises. He (Bolt) talks time, but I don't talk time. I know I'm in excellent shape; great shape. Usain and I have been training together, so I know where I'm at. We know where we are at. It's going to be epic," he promised.

"Training with Usain Bolt, you're training with the fastest man in the world, so why worry? Who else is there? I'm ready. (Justin) Gatlin doesn't scare me. No one scares me," Blake assured. "Not everyone can run under pressure and once the pressure is applied, people tend to crack. I am really looking forward. I can't wait."