Usain Bolt: Double (100m and 200m) world record holder and eight-time Olympic champion Usain Bolt remains unfazed about anyone breaking his world records saying “he is not worried about them”.
The fastest man in the whole world set the 100m world record of 9.58 and the 200m world record of 19.19 at the 2009 World Championships in Berlin, Germany. Despite having been retired from athletics since 2017, the Jamaican still holds the title of “the world’s fastest man”.
In an interview with World Athletics, Bolt was asked about which of his records will get smashed first. He replied: “Not worried about none of them.”
Triple world champion Noah Lyles, Africa’s fastest man Ferdinand Omanyala, and former world champion Fred Kerley are among the athletes aiming for world records. However, none of them has achieved this feat so far.
Lyles, the current world champion in both the 100m and 200m events, targeted Bolt’s 200m 19.19 in 2023 but did not achieve his goal. The American’s 19.31 national record remains the third-fastest time ever
Nevertheless, the sprint star believes that today’s athletes will find it more challenging to chase the 100m record.
“I think the 100m’s going to be harder (to break) because it’s quicker, and if you make a mistake during the race you’re not going to get it. It’s a lot more technical so I think maybe the 100m’s going to go last,” said Bolt.
“I remember actually we had a bet: me, my coach and my masseuse, on how fast I was gonna run. I knew I was gonna break the world record because I was in such good shape at the time. I was running great throughout the season,’ the 37-year-old Jamaican added.