Jamaican Asafa Powell eased into the final of the men's 100m sprint in Beijing on Saturday, while Tyson Gay of the United States eliminated at the Beijing Olympic Games.

Powell timed 9.91 seconds to rank first in the semifinal heat 2, followed by Richard Thompson of Trinidad and Tobago, with 9.93 seconds.

But Gay, title holder of the 2007 world championships at Osaka, Japan, clocked 10.03 second, only ranked fifth in the heat and was eliminated from the final.

World record holder Usain Bolt of Jamaica enter the final early on Saturday with 9.85 seconds.

The final of men's 100m will be held later on Saturday.

(Xinhua News Agency August 16, 2008)