Bolt makes us marvel at the joy of the unbelievable
Allon Sinai's London Diary: You can’t help but smile at the sight of Usain Bolt running. Well, at least I can’t.
By ALLON SINAI, JERUSALEM POST CORRESPONDENTUsain Bolt after winning the 100m 370 (R)(photo credit: REUTERS)
You can’t help but smile at the sight of Usain Bolt running.Well, at least I can’t.There is something about the seemingly ridiculous ease with which the Jamaican strides at speeds no human apart from himself has ever reached that brings you to shake your head in disbelief with the silliest of grins.Bolt’s antics and infectious smile sure make him a lovable character, but it is his performances which produce spontaneous bouts of laughter.Bolt has made a mockery of everything we previously believed about sprinting, or for that matter, the limits of the human body in general.The 25-year-old possesses the most basic of gifts, that of speed.He can run faster than any human in history and it is the simplicity of his audacious talent that makes him such an irresistible force, both on and off the track.Obviously, Bolt has trained exceedingly hard for much of his life to do what he does, but there is something about the 100 meters that makes you feel like it is entirely decided by God-given talent.Safe to say, Bolt has been blessed as much as any other individual in the history of sports.Nevertheless, the powers of this super-human seemed to be waning in recent years following erratic performances.
After blasting onto the scene with three stunning golds and world records at the Beijing Games four years ago, Bolt improved his records in the 100m and 200m even further at the 2009 World Championships.But he stuttered into London after being beaten by countryman Yohan Blake in both the 100m and 200m in the Jamaican trails, and with the three fastest men in history apart from himself contesting Tuesday’s 100m final, there were question marks being raised on whether he would be able to defend his title.There shouldn’t have been.He proved that he is the only one who can beat himself, shattering the dreams of his rivals on the way to defending his 100m crown with the second fastest time ever run, crossing the line after 9.63 seconds, only five hundredths slower than the world record he set at the World Championships in Berlin three years ago.Bolt joined Carl Lewis as the only man to repeat as Olympic 100m champion and left little doubt regarding the identity of the greatest sprinter of all time.But there is more to Bolt than titles or records.He transcends his sport in a way very few others do.The 100m has always been more than a sporting event, appealing to an audience which has otherwise no interest in athletics, but is fascinated with the capabilities of its fellow humans.Bolt’s awe-inspiring records have resulted in him often being described as intergalactic.But in fact, it is quite the opposite.It is as if he is running for the entire human race, proving to us all what we are capable of.No wonder he brings a smile to my face.
