07
PHOTO
GETTY
06
08
HARD GRAFT
07
Training with Glenn
Mills in Kingston
08
Collecting gold at
the London Games for
the 200m sprint
London 2012 success in the confines of Movida nightclub.
A life of fame and parties might be the inevitable
reward, but a more telling question is how he feels about
his preternatural physical gifts. “I know I’m blessed with
a talent,” he says, “and I want to make the most of it.”
Nurture has also played a part. “Everything started
with my childhood,” he explains, recalling his youth in
the rural parish of Trelawny, Jamaica. “I grew up eating
local food, like bananas, berries, yams and stuff that was
all natural. And I was always outside, running without
shoes on.”
Bolt also points to three other key factors: the
Jamaican youth athletics system; his coach, Glen Mills;
and raw hard work. In Jamaica, the highly developed
youth athletics scene centres on the Champs (the Inter-
Schools Championships), where young athletes compete
in front of over 30,000 fans at Kingston’s National
Stadium. “It’s all about the Champs,” he says. “Jamaican
athletes get used to dealing with pressure really young,
so that’s why we performwhen it matters.”
when it was
reported he ate
them – 15-at-a-
time – for every
meal. Well, the
runner was
certainly still
at it during last
year’s London
Games. “I’m not
going to lie,” he
said, admitting to having eaten “a few nuggets”.
But special praise is reserved for Glen Mills. This shy
sprint expert runs Racers Track Club in Kingston and he
provided technical expertise to sharpen up the raw talent,
encouraged Bolt to improve his physical strength and
found an effective method of dealing with his scoliosis
(curvature of the spine). “I owe a lot to my coach,” reveals
the runner. “He has helped me so much in every way
possible, but also, I can talk to him about anything. We
can rap, we laugh and we’ve never really disagreed.”
Still, the athlete believes he wouldn’t have won a
single gold medal without dedication, commitment and
a work ethic that comes straight from his father,
Wellesley. “My dad taught me about hard work,” Bolt
reveals, his easygoing manner briefly replaced by a look
of total focus that I imagine is his game face. “That’s why
I win – and that’s why I party after – because all year long
I work
so
hard. When I’m relaxing, I totally chill. But
when it’s competition time, I’m ready.”
Faster than Lightning: My Autobiography by Usain Bolt
is published by HarperSport (£20)
ANDWHATOF THOSE
CHICKEN
NUGGETS?
THEYWERE HIS ESSENTIAL
FUEL
AT THE 2008OLYMPICS,
0 9 7
U S A I N B O L T
