Usain Bolt bid a blazing-fast farewell to the Rio de Janeiro Games, and likely the Olympics altogether, Friday night with yet another anchor leg for the ages.
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The “triple triple” gold-medallist – who’s won the 100m, 200m, and 4x100m relay the last three Olympics – wowed Olympic staffers and volunteers by throwing a javelin at Rio’s darkened Olympic Stadium.
Meanwhile, the US team was disqualified – again. The country never won an Olympic gold medal in the event prior to Bolt. For Gatlin and Gay, both 34 years old, it was nearly certainly their final moment of glory, however bittersweet.
Nicola White’s last-quarter strike levelled the match at 3-3 and the game went to penalties.
And when the Rio Games has ended and the torch has been put out, Bolt’s legacy as the world’s greatest sprinter – and perhaps the greatest Olympian of all time – will have been firmly cemented.
“I was just watching them and praying that they didn’t mess up”, said Bolt, about the Jamaican teammates during the relay.
Earlier this year, Bolt revealed that he had been in a relationship for two years, telling the Telegraph that he was keen to keep his special lady out of the headlines.
However, in the semi-finals he eased to victory and in the process produced one of the most iconic images in sports history; Bolt’s smile in the direction of photographers whilst moving away from competitors will forever be immortalised.
“But yes I will definitely miss the sport, miss the Olympics because it’s the biggest stage”.
“I try not to think about things like that now”, he said. I had no work to do but to just run to the line. After crossing the line for his finale, Bolt pumped his fist in the air, slowed down and took off those famous gold spikes. Bolt’s last gold was won with the Jamaican relay team, who came first in the 4X100-meters race before Japan and Canada.
A team of Asafa Powell, Yohan Blake and Nickel Ashmeade all made life much easier for the superstar and he was grateful for their efforts. I’ve proven to the world I’m the greatest in the sport, so it’s mission accomplished pretty much.
From that point there was only ever going to be one outcome and Bolt powered home by three metres to universal delight. NBC reports he did not say what the athletes did to alter their credentials, which are needed to access Olympic venues in Rio. At 6-foot-5, the thought went, Bolt was simply too awkward to burst from the starting blocks and build enough speed to win the shortest sprint. “I never knew this would happen when I started out”.
“It’s a great feeling”, said the 29-year-old. “I’ve set the bar high”.
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Counting all the preliminaries, finals and his approximately nine-second blast down the stretch in Friday’s final race, Bolt has spent 325 seconds – a tad less than 5 1/2 minutes – sprinting on the track at the Olympics since he made his debut in Beijing eight years ago.
