Wallace Spearmon's shot at Olympic redemption in the men's 200m is under way in London.
Spearmon advanced to Wednesday's semifinal with a second place finish in the 6th heat Tuesday.
In the heat, Spearmon kept a close eye on first-place finisher, Ecuador's Alex Quinonez, and then coasted across the finish line in 20.47.
Runners only need finish in the top 3 of the Round 1 heats to advance to the semifinals, which will be held at 2:10 p.m. CT on Wednesday.
In the 2008 Beijing Games, a lane violation in the finals cost Spearmon a shot at a medal. In London, he's looking to prove he is the world's best but will have to push past Jamaica's Usain Bolt to do so.
Bolt, who holds the World Record in the 200m with a time of 19.19, qualified in Heat 1 with a time of 20.39 and is also headed to the semifinal.
Spearmon's personal best in the 200m is 19.65.
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With both runners capable of going sub-20 in the race, it would make for an interesting lineup if they both make the finals -- if that happens, that race will take place Thursday at 2:55 p.m. CT.
Team USA's Isiah Young and Maurice Mitchell also qualified for the semfinals in the 200m.
Spearmon, who also holds the American indoor 200m record of 20.10, hails from Chicago but trains at the University of Texas at Arlington under top sprint coach Monte Stratton.
