Aug 30 2008
Lightning Bolt

Usain Bolt (born 21 August 1986) is a Jamaican sprinter. He holds world and Olympic records in both the 100 metres and 200 metres, with times of 9.69 seconds and 19.30 seconds respectively. At the 2008 Summer Olympics, he became the first man in history to break both world records at one Olympics, and the first man since Carl Lewis in 1984 to win both races at the same Olympics. His name and achievements in sprinting have earned him the media nickname "Lightning Bolt". Bolt also distinguished himself prior to the 2008 Olympics. His 200 m gold medal at the 2002 World Junior Championships made him the youngest gold medallist in the history of the competition. He became the first junior sprinter to run the 200 m in under 20 seconds in 2004 with a time of 19.93 s, breaking Roy Martin's world junior record by two tenths of a second. He also set competition records at a number of junior events.

Bolt announced that he would double-up with the 100 metres and 200 metres events at the Beijing Summer Olympics, and the new 100 metres world-record holder was the favourite to win both. Michael Johnson, the 200 metres and 400 metres record holder personally backed the sprinter, saying he did not believe that a lack of experience would work against him. Bolt qualified for the final with 9.92 and 9.85 seconds in the quarter-finals and semifinals respectively. In the Olympic 100 metres final, Bolt broke new ground, winning in 9.69 seconds. This was an improvement upon his own world record, and he was well ahead of second-place finisher Richard Thompson, who finished in 9.89 seconds. Not only was the record set without a favourable wind (+0.0 m/s), but also he visibly slowed down to celebrate before he finished and his shoelace was untied. Bolt continued running past the post, enjoying his victory. Bolt stated that setting a record was not a priority for him, and that his goal was just to win the gold medal, Jamaica's first of the 2008 Games. Olympic medallist Kriss Akabusi construed Bolt's chest slapping before the finish line as showboating, noting that the actions cost Bolt an even faster record time. IOC president Jacques Rogge also condemned the Jamaican's actions as disrespectful. Bolt denied that this was the purpose of his mid-race celebration by saying "I wasn't bragging. When I saw I wasn't covered, I was just happy."

Bolt then focused on attaining a gold medal in the 200 metres event, aiming to emulate Carl Lewis' double win in the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics. Michael Johnson felt that Bolt would easily win gold but believed his world record of 19.32 seconds set at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta would remain intact at the Olympics. Bolt eased through the first and second rounds of the 200 metres, jogging towards the end of his run both times. He won his semifinal and progressed to the last 8 as the favourite to win. The following day, at the final, he won Jamaica's fourth gold of the Games, setting a new world and Olympic record of 19.30 seconds. Johnson's record fell despite the fact Bolt was impeded by a 0.9 m/s headwind. The feat made him the first sprinter since Don Quarrie to hold both 100 and 200 metres world records simultaneously and the first since the introduction of electronic timing. Furthermore, Bolt became the first sprinter to break both records at the same Olympics. Unlike the 100 metres race, Bolt pressed all the way to the finish line, even dipping his chest to improve his time. Following the race, "Happy Birthday" was played over the stadium's sound system as his 22nd birthday began at midnight.