THE EDITOR, Sir:

Asafa was awesome; nothing short of brilliant. We should be thankful for an Asafa Powell. He has done us proud on many occasions, so whenever he fails, we must stick by him and still call him our champion. There are many 'wagonists' who seek only to glorify our heroes when they are up. We should be behind of them through thick and thin. Only a few countries have ever had a 100-metre record holder, and we are blessed to have a world beater as Asafa.

He may have failed to bring home the World Championships gold from Japan, but we should not give up on him. It takes strong power of will to endure the mental strain of these championships. He might not have all that it takes to do it that easily. We must ensure that he is in the right nick to fulfil his promise to the Jamaican fans. We should support him wholeheartedly, and make him feel it in the air that he breathes with us on home soil that we love him.

Never should we forget who we are by forgetting where we are coming from. We hurt our dear Merlene Ottey the same way and call her all sorts of derogatory names because the 100 metres eluded her on so many occasions. Merlene and Asafa are powerful icons who we should respect for the eternal future. They have done us proud in many aspects of our lives. We are known speed merchants all over the world due to their legacy.

Asafa's world record is a living testimony to the resilience we possess as a people. We should be enthused by his will and courage. As a home-bred athlete, we should all be praise him with out reservation. More so, he is truly a man among men.

I am, etc.,

Paris Taylor

bighot43@yahoo.com

Greater Portmore

St. Catherine