London: In the most dramatic bookend to the most illustrious career Usain Bolt has pulled a hamstring in his final race, just 21 strides into the final leg of the World Championship 4x100m relay.
In one of the saddest scenes seen at the London Stadium, Bolt appeared in trouble about 40m after receiving the baton – just as he sought to accelerate and try to catch the British runner Nathaneel Mitchell-Blake and American runner Christian Coleman who were just ahead of him. But by the 50m mark he suddenly hopped in agony, screaming ‘’oh f…k’’ and then collapsing to the track. After officials raced to his assistance, including one with a wheelchair, Bolt eventually got up, and in some pain hobbled across the finish line.
No one was anticipating such a excruciatingly painful goodbye to Bolt’s international athletics career, which has left the global track and field community with a huge void to fill.
Before the race Bolt was in a jovial mood, boxing with the Championship mascot Hero the Hedgehog in the warmup room, and then emerging onto the track to a standing ovation. With a pre-planned shoulder roll with his team, he warmed up down the home straight, waving and cheering and clapping to the crowd. The moment was a little overwhelming, even for Bolt, as he realised this was it: his final sprint on the biggest of stages, but he wasn’t to know he would end up in the medical room, rather than on a farewell lap of the stadium.
Yet the mood in the stadium, while stunned at Bolt’s injury, turned to joy as the British team won the gold medal ahead of the United States. Japan won the bronze. The capacity crowd of 55,000 also roared for Bolt, this time in a chorus of gratefulness, thanks and a huge dollop of sadness.
Bolt seared himself onto the consciousness of the world when his braggadocio antics and playful enthusiasm at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games elevated him well beyond being the fastest man in the world. He continued to dominate the sprints – only a failed drug test by a relay team mate ultimately denied him the triple triple Olympic golds across the 100m,200m and 4x100m relay. Many have commented that Bolt stayed a year too long: that he should have retired at the Rio Olympics, but he had always committed to the London 2017 organisers that he would support their event and he wanted to return to the Olympic track where the crowds had given him so much love.
Bolt wanted to retire as unbeatable – and while his bronze here from the 100m and his hobble in the relay was not the farewell he intended, he can be comforted that he will remain unbeatable as athletics’ personality and his numerous records will stand for some time.
His 100m (9.58s) and 200m (19.19s) world records, set four days apart in Berlin in 2009 remains the zenith of the sport, and well beyond the gravitational pull of the current generation of sprinters.
Mo Farah finishes second
In the past week the winning times in the sprints have been so slow the historians have had to go back 14 or 15 years to find comparable victory efforts. The South African Wayde Van Niekerk is being promoted as his heir apparent, but he is too retiring, too sensitive and not nearly tough enough, or indeed talented enough, to consume the track in the way Bolt did.
In any case, such lofty promotion is something that will occur organically, despite the desperate efforts of athletics officials.
That point was rammed home when the 5000m send off for local hero Mo Farah was ruined by Ethiopian Mutkar Edris. Farah will compete in the Zurich Diamond League next month and then concentrate solely on marathons.
In the race, largely expected to be a procession for Farah, Edris took off from afar with his compatriot Yomif Kejelcha. Despite a desperate sprint finish Farah was unable to haul Edris back, claiming o have been boxed in, although the inside track opened up for him in the last 60m.
‘’I gave 110 per cent. I don’t think there was anything more I could have done,’’ said Farah, 34, as he lost his first major race since 2011, before adding: ‘’They worked as a team. The better man won.’’
Edris, 23, won in 13minutes 32.79secs, with Farah 13minutes 33.22secs and Paul Chelimo picking the bronze in 13minutes 33.30secs.
“I was highly prepared for this race and I knew I was going to beat Mo Farah. After the 10km he was maybe tired so he did not have enough for the last kick. I was stronger.’’ he said.
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