The Greatest Ever?
That’s the only question left for Usain Bolt, after he capped his third straight three-gold medal Olympics performance Friday night in Rio de Janeiro.
“There you go. I am the greatest,’’ Bolt told reporters. “I’m just relieved. It’s happened. I’m just happy, proud of myself. It’s come true. The pressure is real. I look at it as an accomplishment.”
His nine gold medals trail only American Michael Phelps in Olympic history. And after pulling away from the field while anchoring Jamaica’s 37.27 win in the 4×100-meter relay, Bolt has targeted other names, even bigger names: Names like Pele and Ali.
“I’ve proven to the world I’m the greatest. This is what I came here for. That’s what I’m doing. This is why I said this is my last Olympics — I can’t prove anything else,” Bolt had said after winning the 200 and adding to that legacy Friday.
“What else can I do to prove to the world I am the greatest? I am trying to be one of the greatest. Be among [Muhammad] Ali and Pele. I hope to be in that bracket after these Games.”
That’s a pretty exclusive bracket.
And to paraphrase the great philosopher Bum Phillips, if Bolt isn’t in a class by himself, it surely must not take long to call the roll.
Phelps’ 23 gold medals are the most in Olympic history. Bolt’s nine are tied with American sprint legend Carl Lewis, Finnish distance runner Paavo Nurmi, U.S. swimmer Mark Spitz and Russian gymnast Larisa Latynina. But every one of them has been beaten at the Olympics. Bolt’s trophy case is monochrome; and it’s that golden aura of invulnerability that adds to his legend.
Bolt has maintained since February he will retire after next year’s World Championships. If he does walk away, he’ll take a golden era of track with him. He’ll leave behind the likes of Canadian Andre De Grasse, American Trayvon Bromell and a host of other fine young talents, who just aren’t Bolt.
The 6-foot-5 Bolt grew up running barefoot through the green fields of Trelawny, a rustic parish hidden deep in Jamaica’s so-called Cockpit Country known for producing two things: sugar and sprinters.
Olympic champs Merlene Ottey and Veronica Campbell-Brown both preceded Bolt from the parish, as did Sanya Richards-Ross (who won gold running for the U.S.) and Ben Johnson (who won Olympic gold and set two world records before being banned for doping). But Bolt has surpassed them all.
Frankly, he may have surpassed any track athlete in history, setting world records in the 100, 200 and 4×100 — and doing it with flair. He broke his own 100 mark in the 2008 Beijing Olympics despite celebrating before he had hit the finish.
Joy always has come through with Bolt, a fun-loving sort who coach Glen Mills often had to prod to work hard, known for throwing raucous parties back home. That may be part of the reason he’s beloved worldwide (more so than in the U.S., where his Q Score is a modest 20). Well, that and he came from humble beginnings to in turn humble American sprinters.
Bolt constantly dances and strikes his To Di World pose, taken fittingly from a popular dance hall song. He broke it out again Friday night, after taking the baton roughly even with Bromell before obliterating the field down the final straight.
“I’ll stay up late tonight,’’ Bolt said when asked how he’ll celebrate.
“A great sprinter,” acknowledged Tyson Gay, who was dethroned by Bolt in 2008 as the world’s top sprinter. “Nine gold medals, words can’t even describe what he’s done for the sport.”
He has breathed life into it. He has made it fun. And he has been the greatest ever.