• Tyson Gay confident he is closer than ever to Jamaican champion
• 'I believe in my heart I can beat him ... I want to be the best'
World 100-metre silver medallist Tyson Gay says he still believes he can beat Usain Bolt, but is being hampered by long-standing injuries.
The sprinters' personal bests stand at more than a tenth of a second apart – Gay at 9.69 seconds and Bolt holding the world record of 9.58 – but Gay believes he is getting closer to breaking through.
"It is time to put up or shut up," he said. "Sometimes I get to talking that I can beat him, and after a while I have to do it or shut up.
"I'm never going to say I can't beat him because in my heart I believe I can. He hasn't run 9.5 in every meet. I just want to do the best I can do. He is the best right now and I want to be the best."
But for a third consecutive year his quest to catch Bolt is being hampered by a leg problem.
"Something is causing my hamstring to lock up for the past month or so," said Gay, who plans to resume competing with a 200m at the Oregon Diamond League meeting on 3 July.
"For me the key is to stay healthy. And I still continue to try to work on my start. That is something I have been struggling with for years and I just have to have that perfect day one day."
Personal bests in both the 100 and 200 were his aim for the season, he added. "I don't think I have reached my full potential in either event," Gay said. "The 100 is just something I want to prove to myself and the world that I can do, and the 200 is my first love."
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