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Usain Bolt, the Jamaican sprinter, is regarded as one of the greatest athletes and the fastest runners in history. In 2008 and 2015, he won the Olympic gold medals in the 100-meter race. On August 23rd in the Bird’s Nest in Beijing, he stunned the entire world and won his third world championship. The race was full of intense suspense and surprise – Bolt triumphed over American runner Justin Gatlin by a mere one-hundredth of a second.
A Surprising Victory
Even though Bolt is an accomplished athlete, his victory was still a surprise. His competition, Gatlin, had not hadn’t lost in 28 races since September 2013. In 2014 and 2015, he was named the fastest man alive. Bolt had been struggling prior to the World Championships: he had foot surgery last year and had to pull out of a pair events his season with a leg injury. His 100-meter earlier this year suffered a minor lapse; his fastest time this year was 9.87 seconds. But Bolt pulled through for this match. It was a tight race between the two athletes. Gatlin started out in the lead until Bolt gave one last lunge and managed to win by less than a second. It was so fast, you could have blinked and missed it.
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Two Very Different Stories
Gatlin was the favorite to win the race. But he has a controversial reputation. He served a four-year doping ban from 2006 through 2010. His critics say that his success is bad for track’s image in sports. He is still very fast even though he is late in his career. He is 33 years old, and spent many years away from training and competing. Since he has been labelled a cheater, people will always suspect that Gatlin is still using performance enhancing drugs. His crime was committed nearly a decade and he has served his time, but he is still paying for it. Because of his reputation, Gatlin had a lot to prove to all the naysayers.
It Had Been A Tough Year for Bolt
Bolt has a very different image. He has had a less than ideal year and, even after his winning streak, the world had begun to doubt him. With his injuries, he could have gotten discouraged. But he pulled through in an inspirational race, which many are saying was his best race he has ever ran in. But there is pressure to stay on top. Now he has raised the bar even higher for the August 14, 2016 100-meter final of the Olympic Games, that will take place in Rio. The world is waiting to see if he will be able to top this match.
Watch a video of the race below:
https://youtu.be/QSYObch2nNI
