Usain Bolt recorded the fastest 100 metres time of the year on Wednesday, though the Olympic champion's sprint in Ostrava was wind-assisted.
In his first European track meeting of 2009, Bolt came over the line in a time of 9.77 seconds. At the time of the race during the IAAF Golden Spike meeting in Ostrava on Wednesday night, however, the wind had been slightly over the legal limit.
The meeting's record time was set by Bolt's fellow Jamaican Asafa Powell in 2005, a 9.85 seconds effort.
Bolt was the slowest out of the blocks, as the competitors set off with a following wind of 2.1 metres per second, but stormed home in stunning fashion, with the IAAF World Championships closing on the horizon.
Craig Pickering finished second in 10.08, clear of Ronald Pognon, who took third in 10.15.