Rio to be Bolt's last Olympic appearance
Sprinter Usain Bolt confirmed that the Rio Olympics will be his last, despite calls to prolong his career. Bolt suggested in January that he could continue competing until the 2020 Games in Tokyo on the advice of his coach Glen Mills. But the Jamaican said that success in Rio would leave him with little reason to continue at the elite level.
Usain St. Leo Bolt was born in Trelawny, Jamaica. At the age of 15, Bolt took his first shot at success on the world stage at the 2002 World Junior Championships in Kingston, Jamaica, where he won the 200-meter dash, making him the youngest world-junior gold medalist ever. He received IAAF's rising star award that year and soon was given the nickname "Lightning Bolt."
Despite his hamstring injury, Bolt was chosen for the Jamaican Olympic squad of 2004 Athens Olympics, where he was eliminated in the first round. He reached the world Top 5 rankings in 2005 and 2006. The year 2007 proved to be a breakthrough one for Bolt, where he earned two silver medals at the IAAF World Championship in Osaka, Japan.
In the 2008 Beijing Olympics, Bolt won the 100m, 200m and 4x100m relay. In the 2009 World Championships in Berlin, he created a world-record, winning 100m and 200m events in the fastest times with 9.58 and 19.19 seconds respectively. In 2012, he won the 100m, 200m and 4x100m relay again in London Olympics. Bolt also went on to win the 2013 World Championships (100/200/4x100m).
In the 2012 London Olympics, out of the 8 finalists in 100m race (won by Bolt), all the top seven finished under 10 seconds time. Only Asafa Powell finished outside the 10s barrier with 11.99 seconds.
Usain was awarded the Laureus World Sportsman of the Year on two occasions (2009 & 2010). He was recognized as the IAAF World Athlete of the Year - 2008, 2009, 2011, 2012 and 2013. He was the Track & Field Athlete of the Year in 2008, 2009. Apart from these, Bolt won numerous awards in many countries across the world.
Bolt is the first man to set three world records in a single Olympic Games competition. He is undoubtedly the 'World's Fastest Man' having broken the 100m world record three times and the 200m record two times.
Bolt pulled off a stunning victory by beating Justin Gatlin in 9.79 seconds, a narrow 0.01 seconds ahead of the latter. After the scandal-ridden year which athletics has endured with a series of doping allegations, Bolt's performance came as a beacon of hope. He said, "I've shown the world it is possible to succeed clean." This was his consecutive gold at the World Championships.
Usain Bolt signed a two-book autobiographical deal with Harper Sport. The first of these "My Story: 9.58: Being the World's Fastest Man" was released in Oct 2010. The second book "Faster than Lightning" was released in Sep 2013.
At the ongoing IAAF- Athletics World Championships in Beijing, Usain Bolt won the 200 meters final thrashing his rival Justin Gatlin. The Jamaican who completed the sprint double in 19.55 seconds was the fastest in the world this year. Bolt now has a record 10 gold medals in World Championships. He could seal another gold in the upcoming men's 4x100m relay.
"My biggest dream at the Olympics is to win three gold medals again, that is my focus, that is what I want," Bolt said. He also said he aimed to break the 19-second barrier in 200-metres before his retirement in next four years.
