Usain freaking Bolt. Never has there been a more fitting name for a person. I rescind the statement I made in a previous post about wanting to see Tyson Gay dominate Usain Bolt. What I'm now interested in is seeing Bolt embarrass anybody who attempts to step on the track with him. The best thing that ever happened to Tyson Gay was not running in that final. He saved a little face. Tyson Gay can still say it wasn't him competing against Bolt. Frankly, Bolt made anybody who has ever ran a 100m race look foolish.For those who missed it, Bolt ran a world record 9.69 in the 100m event on Sunday. Breaking the record was great but what made it brilliant was the fact that Bolt effectively shut it down 20m from the end of the race. He was up by so much that he was able to put his arms out and pound his chest before he crossed the line. That display could be looked at as a show of defiance to the detractors and critics who said he was too young to be able to overcome the rigors of preliminary races and still be able to outperform the best in the world on the big stage.
His competitors and some sports "authorities" may not like it but his brand of braggadocio is a refresher in why sports are so great. The villain is just as important as the hero. They are arguably the two most important components in what motivates people to win (or spectate), love for their teammates (or favorite team) and hate for their enemies (or opponents). It was clear on Sunday that Bolt's intentions were to collect both the Olympic hardware and the souls of his competitors. Oh yeah, and he still has the 200m, which is considered his best event. Hide the women and children.
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6 comments:
That Bolt run was insane. He would have shattered the world record had he kept running. That guy is ridiculous. It's like watching Beau play frisbee.
whoa whoa..watching Beau play ultmate makes most people wet...are you saying Bolt made you randy?
It made me man-wet. You know, how sometimes you're watching Beau and you get the distinct impression he isn't even trying. Yet he continually skies bitches and runs past the "fastest" players in ultimate. Watch Bolt run was like that. A little too good, for his own good. Hence the (I think deplorable) showboating.
I mean, if you have the chance to significantly set the world record, fucking put your head down and do it. Create a legend for yourself. Don't slow down and be a douche. You've got days to celebrate after, fucking run while you can.
Baby Jesus may punish him with serious leg injury so he never runs again. Then his record is broken by that shorter, nicer Jamaican fellow. Then Bolt would be a footnote to a footnote. That's karma.
I did some weird back and forth with my tense up there, but I'm cool with it. These are comments, where chaos is king! And grammar is a little bitch.
-bb13
Oh, don't get me wrong, I'm not suggesting Beau is a showboater like Bolt. Not at all. Beau is quite humble all things considered. I know FAR WORSE ultimate players that actively display bigger egos. Hell, I know people that suck at ultimate, and life in general, that have more obnoxious egos than beau.
-bb13
A couple of things that should be mentioned:
1. While watching this with several of my teammates, it was noted that Bolt's display was reminiscent of what Beau does. He looks like he's often jogging and this becomes apparent when he does kick it into that 5th gear. Breathtaking.
2. The only person I really felt sorry for was Asafa Powell. He has been the big runner in Jamaica over the last 4 years and just this year, Bolt came into the picture. If it happened a year later, Asafa might have a medal. Now he's an afterthought even in his own country.
3. I did mention that part of Bolt's appeal is that he does have that bad guy appeal. His swagger will make other guys hate him and will provide for interesting rivalries.
4. I read an article on another blog that mentioned the fact that Jamaican runners receive bonuses for breaking world records. Perhaps Bolt is being businesslike about this. Keep chipping away at the record and get paid instead of shaving too much off to the point where you can't go any faster. Not saying he was thinking this but it's a possible scenario.
5. The mental game is just as much a part of running as it is any other sport. I think the more confident he acts, the less confident his opponents will be. This may prove to widen the gap with some competitors. Others will just be fired up to beat him. He's certainly putting himself out there.
amazing race to watch. I know everyone I was watching it with was pissed at the early celebration but I loved it. Breaking the world record in your warm down jog has got to feel nice.
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