Ian Stewart, the English organizer of the event, said Sunday that Gatlin will not join Powell, who is co-owner of the world 100m record with Galtlin, at Gateshead for what was expected to be the first head-to-head showdown since the American's record-matching run on May 12.

    "We've had an agreement with the organizers in England since November," said Gatlin's agent Renaldo Nehemiah. "We learned since the Penn Relays that Asafa Powell will run at Gateshead.

    "As you know, running at Gateshead with or without Powell is not the same thing. We would have liked to be informed of his participation.

    "We believe that Gateshead is not the best moment or the best venue for a first meeting," Nehemiah said, noting that Gatlin has pursued a busy schedule including meetings at Osaka, Doha, Eugene and, coming up on June 3, New York.

    Gatlin and Powell were set to compete in the 100m final in Eugene Sunday at the Prefontaine Classic meet, although they were slotted into different sections of a two-section final in which times will be combined to determine a winner.

    Gatlin won at Doha earlier this month but his effort was originally clocked at a record 9.76 seconds before the IAAF said the timing should have rounded up the run to 9.77 and only equal Powell. Enditem