Already assured of his legend status, Bolt also added to his reputation as sport’s number-one crowd pleaser as he took a leisurely circuit of the stadium, posing for pictures and shaking a thousand hands. That drought ended as Jemima Sumgong passed Bahrain’s Eunice Kirwa with two miles to go and never looked back on a warm, sticky Sunday. As a matter of fact, Gatlin was the 100m champion in 2004 Olympics.
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The person who wins the 100 meters at the Olympic Games is generally accorded the “fastest man” title, and Bolt has owned it uninterrupted through three Olympiads. That is without even bringing the 200m into it.
But Gatlin’s boos were replaced with ecstatic cheers as Bolt came from behind to breeze past the American and give athletics the result they so desperately needed.
The Rio fans showed what they thought of him as he was loudly booed as he entered the arena and Gatlin returned the compliment by being the only finalist not to acknowledge the them.
In establishing himself as the greatest sprinter in history, Bolt had the luxury of timing.
“I couldn’t imagine anything else”, Blake said.
The Jamaican had to work harder than expected to see off the challenge of American Justin Gatlin, though, after a sluggish start left him trailing at halfway. Andre de Grasse of Canada finished in 9.92 to go through.
Bolt has said that this year’s Olympic Games will be his last.
Lilly King of U.S. celebrates winning the gold medal while Yulia Efimova of Russian Federation looks on in the women’s 100m breaststroke final on day 3 of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games at Olympic Aquatics Center on August 8, 2016 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Del Potro, whose ranking has slipped to 141 after a series of wrist injuries over the past six years have kept him out of the game for prolonged periods, beat top seed Novak Djokovic and Spain’s Rafa Nadal to reach the final. He wanted this one and two more – the 200m gold and the 4×100 relay – at these Olympics that he has said will be his last.
“It’s the most special because it’s the third”, Bolt said post-race.
Each of those races had something missing, though: There was no Usain Bolt.
“I just want to say congrats”.
Millions of Bolt’s fans held their breath as he got off to a relatively slow start in the 100 and Gatlin took the early lead.
The sprinter also tweeted soon after this victory, dedicating his triumph to the Jamaican people. The race began and ended in Rio’s Sambodromo, the parade ground where the city’s Carnival takes place every year.
Murray gripped his head and tears welled up after he clinched match point when he broke del Potro’s serve for the ninth time, then shared a long hug with the Argentine at the net. “I’ve dealt with that punishment”.
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Bolt headed to the Beijing World Championships in August 2015 with signs that his crown might be slipping.
