June 14 (Bloomberg) -- Asafa Powell of Jamaica set a world record of 9.77 seconds in the men's 100 meters at the Athens IAAF Super Grand Prix, one-hundredth of a second faster than Tim Montgomery's 3-year-old mark.

Powell, the world's top-ranked sprinter, beat Ghana's Aziz Zakari (9.99 seconds) and fellow Jamaican Michael Frater (10.03) to set the wind-legal record at the Olympic Stadium in Athens, according to the event's official Web site.

Powell's time initially was recorded as the same as Montgomery's mark before officials rounded it down to a new world record.

``I knew that I could do it,'' Powell told the Web site of the International Association of Athletics Federations, the sport's governing body. ``I did my best. It feels great to be the fastest man of the world.''

The 22-year-old Powell was fifth in the Olympics on the same track in Athens last year. He ran 9.94 seconds in the Olympics, 0.09 seconds slower than gold-medalist Justin Gatlin of the U.S.

Today was the fourth time this year that Powell has run the 100 in less than 10 seconds. He'd been clocked twice in 9.84 seconds and once at 9.85.

Montgomery set the previous world record of 9.78 in Paris in September 2002. Powell's record comes on the same track where American Maurice Greene set the then-world mark of 9.79 in June of 1999.

``I am very happy that in my second presence here in Greece, I achieved this performance,'' Powell said. ``If you ask what I can do more this year, you will just have to wait until the end of this season to see.''

Drug Case

Zakari was also competing in Paris when Montgomery set his record time.

Montgomery is challenging a U.S. Anti-Doping Agency recommendation that he be barred for life for using steroids, with a hearing held last week in San Francisco. The charge is based on evidence from a U.S. investigation of a California company suspected of distributing a designer steroid known as THG.

Powell is the seventh athlete to hold the world record in the 100 meters since 1990. Leroy Burrell clocked 9.90 in 1991 before Carl Lewis took the record two months later. Burrell improved the mark in 1994 before Donovan Bailey, Greene and Montgomery set new bests.

Jim Hines became the first man to run 100 meters in less than 10 seconds in 1968.

The 6-foot-3 Powell, the youngest of six brothers, didn't run his first sprint race until 2001, when he competed at the Jamaican championships, the IAAF said in a story on its Web site from August 2004. The Kingston-based Powell had previously played soccer for the Charlemont High School and Orange Field County Club teams.

Powell is scheduled to compete at track's world championships in Helsinki, Finland, in August. He was disqualified in the quarterfinals two years ago for two false starts.

To contact the reporter on this story: Erik Matuszewski in Princeton at matuszewski@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: June 14, 2005 20:57 EDT