Asafa Powell (right) finishes third behind Tyson Gay in the 100m final

The Jamaican faded to third place behind Bahamian Derrick Atkins while Gay stormed to take gold in Osaka.

The 24-year-old said: "When Tyson came on and gave me a little bit of pressure I just panicked.

"When I saw I wasn't in gold medal contention, I gave up in the middle of the race. I just stopped running."

Nine-time world champion and BBC analyst Michael Johnson indicated after the race that he believed Powell had conceded the race.

Johnson said: "You could see him thinking, I'm losing it, I'm losing it, before he just gave up."

And Powell admitted: "I said to myself there was no coming back from this."

The loss was a major disappointment for Powell, who has never won a world title despite having run a global best 9.77 seconds three times.

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"I felt very free, very relaxed before the race but I am not sure what happened and I can't be negative right now," he added.

Powell, who failed to medal in the 2003 worlds and 2004 Olympics before missing the 2005 World Championships through injury, promised to make amends by breaking his own world record before the end of the year.

"I didn't get to run fast at these world championships but I am going to bounce right back," Powell said. "I am going out there and I am going to give a world record."

He also insisted he can't wait to take on Gay again soon, perhaps in Brussels next month.

"We both can bring some excitement to the sport," Powell said. "He will win some races and I will win some."