It isn’t often that we are graced with an athlete like Usain Bolt. One of the greatest sprinters of all time, Bolt was the poster boy of athletics until his retirement in 2017. A showman and an endearing hero, the void left by his departure from the sport is difficult to fill.
Even though his world records in both the 100 m and 200 m sprints came in 2009, Bolt still had plenty to offer in the previous decade as well. He added the 100m, 200 m and 4×100 m gold medals from the 2012 London Olympics and 2016 Rio Olympics to the 100 m and 200 m golds he won at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. He is therefore the only sprinter to have won the Olympics 100 m and 200 m titles at three Olympics, and it isn’t going to be an easy feat to replicate.
Apart from the Olympics, Bolt also dominated the scene at the World Championships that are held every two years, winning a record 11 gold medals, including eight in the last decade.
He chose the 2017 World Championships at London as his final event, but alas, it didn’t turn out to be a fairytale ending. He had to be content with a bronze in his last individual 100 m race. He opted out of the 200 m event and pulled up with a hamstring injury while running the anchor leg for Jamaica in the 4×100 m relay final, bringing the curtains down on a glorious career.
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