Usain Bolt is carrying an entire sport on his back! Sprint king seeks to banish the drug cheats again with his genius

• Six-time Olympic champion Usain Bolt has seen off all of his rivals, including the cheats
• Bolt, Ali, Woods, Pele, Bradman and Nicklaus constitute an elite on whom the term 'genius' sits lightly

By Patrick Collins for The Mail on Sunday

Published: 16:01 EST, 25 July 2015 | Updated: 04:51 EST, 26 July 2015

At 29 minutes past eight, the Olympic Stadium announcer delivered his party piece. ‘Heat Two of the men’s 100 metres,’ he began. He moved from lane to lane, identifying the British athletes: ‘Andrew Robertson … Richard Kilty … CJ Ujah …’ Then he paused for dramatic effect, before beginning: ‘With eight world titles, six Olympic gold medals…’ A glorious clamour devoured the rest of his message.

Usain Bolt responded with a small wave, a tight smile and a couple of familiar poses. He is 28 years old, he has lived with adulation for a decade or more, and he has handled it with sensible maturity. And throughout that time he has worked with a fierce intensity, for he is a serious man who is exploring and developing an exquisite talent.

Usain Bolt's superb performances in London served as a stark reminder of his exceptional capabilities

As Bolt acknowledged the ovation on Friday evening, we thought of others whose introductions provoked similar acclaim.

‘In the red corner, from Louisville, Kentucky …’ And Muhammad Ali would come alive in the spotlight.

‘Next on the tee: Tiger Woods!’ The young Woods, Tiger before the fall.

‘No10 for Brazil: Pele.’ Not so much a name, more a promise of perfection.

Usain Bolt cruised to victory during the men's 100m final, allaying any concerns over his fitness 

Sir Donald Bradman was never accorded an introduction, but then he never needed one. Sir Alec Bedser once told me that when the England bowlers watched Bradman emerge from the pavilion, they would mutter: ‘We’re in for a long day.’

Bolt, Ali, Woods, Pele, Bradman and a precious few others — Jack Nicklaus, certainly, and, in time, Lionel Messi — constitute an elite on whom the term ‘genius’ sits lightly. All in his turn bore crippling burdens. But only Usain Bolt has been asked to carry an entire sport upon his back.

At the Anniversary Games, he seemed almost painfully aware of his responsibilities. He trotted out pat answers to soft questions: it’s wonderful to be back in London and 2012 would stay with him for ever and he loves the British fans and he really doesn’t mind the weather. As he spoke, the driving rain was bouncing off the track, and the high summer evening was cold as November. But he had other matters on his mind.

Forever the showman, speedster Bolt strikes his trademark celebratory pose with the Jamaican flag

Down the years, he has seen off all of his rivals, including the cheats. Now, just weeks away from the World Championships in Beijing, he must find the form to deal with the most formidable rival of all. The twice-convicted drugs cheat Justin Gatlin this season lowered his 100m personal best to a remarkable 9.74 seconds. Gatlin is 33 years old, yet he is running faster than ever. His times reek like the ripest gorgonzola, yet he will run in Beijing, and he will start as favourite.

The sport of track and field, indeed, the entire world of sport, wants Bolt to slay the dragon, to reassure a doubting public that the good guys can still prevail. But the task is probably the most formidable he has ever faced. And how well he knows it. Just about every aspect of Friday evening seemed to increase the pressure. His fellow Jamaicans turned out in vast numbers; flaunting their yellow jerseys, clutching their sodden banners, swaying stylishly when Bob Marley boomed through the stadium speakers. Bolt knew what they expected.

The 28-year-old bows to the excited London crowd before taking his position in one of the heats 

The stadium screens repeatedly flashed up images of The Man; warming up, fixing his starting blocks, going through his drills. More expectation. After this, running might well be a release. And so it proved, quite wonderfully. The heat was a smoothly routine affair; an adequate start, a smooth pick-up, a coltishly irresistible finish. Then we glanced at the clock: 9.87secs! This was sprinting, this was pace, this was something like the best of Bolt. He controlled his emotion, leaving the arena quickly, searching for warmth and the chance to assess.

He returned precisely one hour later; serious, stern, wondering if he could replicate his first effort. The field was more talented, the weather more wretched, but the crowd was willing him to do something wonderful. This time, his fragile start was ragged and he was forced to work through a headwind. Only in the final 20 metres did he start to harness those endlessly long legs, and he was pressed to the line in the same 9.87secs. It was by far his best performance of the year. The acclaim came tumbling down the slopes of the stadium, and his smile grew suddenly wide.

Bolt's time of 9.87 seconds in both the heat and the final is the sixth fastest time of the year for that event

Young CJ Ujah was asked what it was like to line up alongside the great man. ‘Jeez!’, he said. ‘He runs like the wind, don’t he?’

Again, Bolt obeyed all the conventions; circling the arena, accepting the cheers, wrapping himself in the Jamaican flag, pausing to embrace Mo Farah as the Briton prepared for his own race. He answered more soft questions about his plans, his prospects, the crowd, the weather. Then he said something which seemed significant.

Asked about his immediate schedule, he said: ‘I have to work harder. Really hard. That’s what it will take: hard work.’

Twice-convicted drugs cheat Justin Gatlin, aged 33, is running faster than ever

That is the central fact which the great ones have always understood; natural talent, even genius, counts for nothing without the toil which sustains it. If Bolt is the best, then it is largely because he works hardest of all.

Others may prefer the short cut of the tablet or the needle. At least one such athlete will be turning up in Beijing next month.

We should hope and pray Usain Bolt will prevail. It is hard enough to answer the demands of his island nation. Far harder to run like the wind, while carrying a sport upon his own broad back.

Just ignore KP’s beached wail

As we anticipate the third instalment of this compelling Ashes series, a plaintive voice comes drifting through the ether. Kevin Pietersen is feeling neglected.

‘What a waste, just lying on a beach’, he tweets. ‘I wish I could help!’… ‘I should be in UK prepping for the 3rd Test! So silly really! Sad! … So, so, so, so silly!’ It is the purest KP; a wondrous mixture of abject self-pity and rampant self-delusion. Leave aside the fact that he is a 35-year-old part-time cricketer without a smidgeon of recent form, there are several reasons why Pietersen will not be at Edgbaston.

Rather than preparing for the Ashes Tests, Kevin Pietersen is spending his time on the beach and golf course

There was his treacherous criticism of his captain Andrew Strauss in texts sent to the South African team. There was his tawdry little book which belittled former colleagues and abused another captain, Alastair Cook.

And there is the fact that, time and again, he has been a disruptive — some would say poisonous — influence in the dressing room. He would dismiss such criticism, since he much prefers the banal flattery of back-slapping boors. And so he lies on a beach and tweets inanities. It is so, so, so, so silly. And rather sad.

PS

Football tells us that hooliganism was a disease of the dark ages. The game has changed, we are all ‘consumers’ now. Then along comes the case involving Chelsea fans on the Paris underground train. Normal people shuddered at their vile antics, yet a certain kind of football fan found them amusing, especially that young military historian who chanted: ‘Where were you in World War Two?’ This may well be the age of the ‘consumer’. We shall see. The next time our clubs invade Europe.

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