Usain Bolt is a Jamaican sprinter and world record holder in the 100-meter and 200-meter sprints. He is the first person to hold both world records simultaneously since 1967, and the first person to do so electronically timed. He also holds the world record as a member of the 4×100-meter relay team. He is the reigning Olympic champion in these three events, the first man to win six Olympic gold medals in sprinting, and an eight-time World champion. He is the world and Olympic record holder in the 100 meters, the 200 meters, and the 4×100 meters relay.
Born and raised in Jamaica, Bolt began sprinting at the age of 15. He quickly rose to prominence, winning his first international gold medal in the 200-meter sprint at the 2002 Commonwealth Games. He went on to win five more gold medals at the 2003 World Championships, becoming the first man to win the 200-meter and 400-meter sprint double at a single World championship. He repeated this feat at the Beijing Olympics, winning the 100-meter, 200-meter and 4×100-meter relay gold medals. He is the only sprinter to win Olympic 100-meter and 200-meter gold medals in consecutive Olympics, and the first man to win three gold medals in both the 100-meter and 200-meter sprints at a single Olympics. In 2009, he set world records in the 100-meter and 200-meter sprints, with times of 9.58 seconds and 19.19 seconds respectively. These records were improved upon at the 2013 World Championships, with times of 9.58 seconds and 19.32 seconds in the 100-meter and 200-meter, respectively. Bolt has broken numerous other world records, including the world record for the 150-meter sprint, and the world record for the 4×100-meter relay.
Bolt's achievements in sprinting have earned him the media nickname "Lightning Bolt", and his awards include the IA AF World Athlete of the Year, Track & Field Athlete of the Year, and Laurels World Sportsman of the Year. He is the only sprinter to be ranked in the top three in the 100-meter, 200-meter and 400-meter sprints simultaneously. He is the first athlete to hold both the 100-meter and 200-meter world records since Jesse Owens did so in 1936.
Early life;
Usain Bolt was born on 21 August 1986 in Sherwood Content, a small town in Trelawny Parish, Jamaica, to Jennifer and Wellesley Bolt. His father was a humble cricket player and his mother a retired sprint runner. As a child, Bolt attended Waldensian Primary, where he first began to show his prowess for running, winning his first school race at age 10. By the age of 12, he had become the school's fastest runner over the 100 meters distance. Upon his entry to William Knibb Memorial High School, Bolt continued to excel in athletics, winning the school's 200-meter sprint title in his final year.
Career;
Bolt's first international medal came at the 2002 World Junior Championships in Kingston, where he won the 200-meter gold medal. He made his first senior appearance at the 2002 Commonwealth Games in Manchester, where he won the 200-meter gold medal.
Bolt became the first man to win both the 100-meter and 200-meter sprints at a single World championship, when he did so at the 2003 World Championships in Paris. He also set a new world record in the process, with a time of 9.77 seconds in the 100-meter final.
At the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Bolt finished fifth in the 200-meter final with a time of 20.13 seconds.
Bolt's first world record came in the 100-meter sprint, when he ran a time of 9.69 seconds at the 2007 World Championships in Osaka. This was also the first time that Bolt had run the 100-meter sprint in under 10 seconds.
In 2008, Bolt continued his success, winning the 100-meter gold medal at the Beijing Olympics with a time of 9.69 seconds, just one-hundredth of a second shy of his own world record. He also won the 200-meter gold medal, with a time of 19.30 seconds, and the 4×100-meter relay gold medal, with a time of 37.10 seconds.
Bolt's success continued in 2009, when he set new world records in the 100-meter and 200-meter sprints, with times of 9.58 seconds and 19.19 seconds respectively.
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