Dear Editor,

There is only one man who walked this earth who never made a mistake. It seems eminently sensible then to take his advice on all things — including medical treatment.

“They that are whole hath no need of the physician, but they that are sick.” Jesus, of course, said this in Matthew 9:12.

It seems that Asafa Powell has needed surgery to correct his groin injury for quite some time but has refused to do it. Tyson Gay had hip replacement surgery, which was pretty major, and is now running faster than ever. Asafa’s injury has become more and more debilitating over the years and he has been missing more and more races and failing to complete many of the ones he can even manage to enter.

His face at the Olympics when he pulled up still haunts me. Even above the physical pain was the great agony of disappointment. At the moment, his career has stalled. Like Tyson Gay, surgery might be just what he needs to put him back on top. Kim Collins is older than Asafa, has never run as fast and still makes the winner’s podium. There is great hope for Asafa with the right treatment.

Going back to the same book — the most widely read book in the world — we find another bit of advice on training.

“Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. Therefore I do not run like someone running aimlessly…” (1 Cor 9:25,26)

Bolt must convince himself of the need for self-discipline and strict training in order to win. We have no idea of where Blake is at the moment — coming out of a serious career-threatening injury — but with Gay and Gatlin running some pretty fast times, Bolt has to aim his training at his perceived weak areas with a view to eliminating them speedily in order to win at the world games.

Undoubtedly, he is the most talented sprinter alive, but he needs work to remain at the top. He needs to put in as much work as Gay, Gatlin and his teammate Yohan Blake to keep his top spot.

This applies to those who want to excel at any endeavor. But even more than these runners, those who run the Christian race for life must work daily to eliminate our weaknesses.

Elaine Hope

avideducator@hotmail.com