By Steve Keating
TORONTO, July 21 (Reuters) - With no Usain Bolt or Justin
Gatlin in the field, Canadian sprinter Andre De Grasse eased to
a leisurely win in his opening heat of the 100 metres at the Pan
American Games on Tuesday.
Trinidad and Tobago's Kesston Bledman and Americans Remontay
McClain and BeeJay Lee all slipped under 10 seconds in their
heats but it was De Grasse getting all the attention despite
running 10.06 as the athletics competition got underway.
The 20-year-old emerged this year as Canada's biggest
sprinting hope since Donovan Bailey, who won the 100m gold at
the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, when he became the first Canadian
since 1999 to run under 10 seconds after he clocked 9.97 at the
Pac-12 track and field championships two months ago.
He followed that with a wind assisted run of 9.75 seconds at
last month's U.S. collegiate championships in Oregon.
"You need to have the big performance when it matters and
Andre has proven that," Tony Sharpe, a 1984 Olympic sprinter who
is one of Canada's top sprint coaches, told reporters.
"Before, he was kind of in the background but now that's
it's on him it's going to be great to see how he responds to
that bit of pressure.
"Now you know who Andre De Grasse is, so it's a little
different and we'll see how he responds, but I have a feeling
that he'll be just fine."
Canada was quick out of the blocks on the opening day of the
athletics competition picking up gold medals from Shawnacy
Barber in the men's pole vault and Elizabeth Gleadle in the
women's javelin.
Matt Hughes then won the 3,000m steeplechase while Mohammed
Ahmed took gold in the 10,000m.
The successful day in athletics, however, was not enough to
see Canada reel in the United States at the top of the medal
table.
The U.S. continues to lead with 69 gold and 183 overall
medals while the hosts remain in second with 59 gold and 160.
Brazil are a distant third on 32 and 110.
The U.S. picked up just four gold on Tuesday with Queen
Harrison taking top spot in the 100m hurdles, Katharine Holmes
in women's fencing epee, Paige McPherson in the taekwondo womens
67kg weight class and the table tennis women's team event.
Athletics delivered Jamaica's first gold of the Games with
shotputter O'Dayne Richards providing the breakthrough.
Colombian Caterine Ibarguen, Olympic silver medallist in the
triple jump added Pan Am gold while Brazil's Juliana Paula Dos
Santos won the women's 5,000m.
But there was no gold for Brazil in beach volleyball as
Mexico beat the 2016 Olympic hosts in the men's competition and
Argentina beat Cuba in the women's final.
(Editing by Greg Stutchbury)