As journalists from across the world hung to Bolt’s every word and almost 70 cameras filmed his beaming smile, the sprinter talked about his plans to retire and deprive the Olympics of its biggest star at the 2020 Tokyo Games.
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Jamaica’s Usain Bolt announced earlier this week that the Rio Olympics 2016 is going to be his last Olympic games.
“I never really try to pick out one person”, Bolt said, in a subtle message to Justin Gatlin, who has served as Bolt’s foil despite only occasional head-to-head success. We quickly realised we’d been lucky enough to get Bolt’s heat, and I couldn’t believe it when I saw Bolt was in my lane.
Then – bizarrely – there was a rap from Nicolay Andre Ramm, a Norwegian radio journalist, who told Bolt he loved him and didn’t want him to get hit by a Segway, as he had been in the World Championships in Beijing a year ago.
“I think it might be a little but hard”, said Bolt, who has never bettered the world record of 19.19sec he set in 2009. Bolt bounced up and was no worse for wear.
Bolt has the 100 metre and 200 metre world records and his biggest hope is to break the 200 metres and even run in a time below 19 seconds.
But Bolt is nearly as much an entertainer as a sprinter. “That’s what people come out to see”. They like it when I do insane stuff.
“I think we are going in the right direction”, said Bolt when asked about doping. “In a few years it will be fine, I personally think”. I must say, we’re weeding out the bad ones.
“It looks like we get attached by octopuses”, said three-time U.S. Olympian Dana Vollmer, fresh off a bronze medal in the 100 butterfly. He wants three gold medals, he wants three more world records, he wants to run a 200 in under 19 seconds. Bolt now holds the record at 19.19 seconds. But the leg injury leading up to the Olympics made it a less-manageable goal to pursue.
Still, why not aim high?
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“I really want to run under 19 seconds, that’s my focus”. ‘Regaining credibility in terms of the doping and the corruption that’s taken place is not going to happen in Rio or by the end of this year. “I always think of winning, always”. “This will be my final Olympics – and I know a lot of people are not happy about that – so it’s a big one”. Usain Bolt dances samba at a pr … He said the only problem he’s encountered during his stay in Rio had to do with TV. “So until somebody beats him, until somebody puts him in his place, he’s going to continue to do what he wants to do”, said Rodgers, who himself failed to qualify for the USA’s 100m team here, but will feature in the 4x100m relay.
