Usain Bolt seeks to say his goodbye with another gold medal Friday night at the Rio de Janeiro Games, where another Olympic juggernaut – the US men’s basketball team – faces Spain in the semifinals.
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In what he says will be his final Olympic Games, Bolt is running for one more gold in the 4×100-meter relay on Friday night along with his Jamaican teammates.
Bolt was only sprinter to break the 20 second barrier in the wet conditions, clocking a time of 19.78 to win his eighth Olympic Games gold medal.
Team GB’s Adam Gemili narrowly missed out on a bronze medal after it was awarded to France’s Christophe Lemaitre.
It took Bolt longer than usual to get there in the Olympic 200m final – 19.78 seconds – in his last individual Olympic race. “But the key thing is that you guys know I won and the only thing that matters is the gold medal”, Bolt said after the race.
The potential challenge of LeShawn Merritt, who has the fastest 200m time this season, dissipated nearly immediately, while Andre de Grasse, who is seen by many as Bolt’s successor on the sprint stage, did not have the legs to match his rival as he had in the semi-finals.
“I got out and ran and he was trying to run me down”. Be among [Muhammad] Ali and Pelé.
It was a pure foot race, with slower times the result of a damp track and a -0.5 m/s head wind.
Bolt’s 200 meter gold victory obliterated his rivals as per usual leaving them far behind as he crossed the finish line in 19.78 seconds.
That means Usain Bolt’s lightening quick performances in the 200-meter may be coming to an end. This is why I said this is my last Olympics.
“I’ve proven to the world I’m the greatest”, he said.
In the 2008 and 2012 Olympics, devout Catholic Usain Bolt emerged victorious as the gold medalist of the 100-meter, 200-meter and 4×100-meter relays.
“I’m getting older and my body is ageing”.
Despite that the athlete, who is 30 on Sunday, was delighted to win gold saying: “No, I can’t grasp what I’ve achieved, definitely not”. I came off the bend and tried to do something, tried to go, but maybe I used up too much energy in the semi-final.
Through the Usain Bolt Foundation, the Olympian reaches out to children with the mission of creating “opportunities through education and cultural development for a positive change”.
With chants of “Usain Bolt, Usain Bolt” ringing out across a mostly full stadium, Bolt paraded around the track with his Jamaican flag while Bob Marley’s “One Love” blared in the background.
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“That’s a good question”, Bolt said.
