The Sunday Mail
The fastest man on earth, Usain Bolt, has been happily settling into retired life and fatherhood after hanging up his cleats in 2017.
However, the Jamaican sprint king and eight-time Olympic gold medallist revealed that there was a moment when he seriously considered making a sensational comeback to the track.
“I thought about that once and I actually went to my coach and sat down with him and talked to him,” Bolt exclusively told Wide World of Sports.
The now 33-year-old said the only thing that stopped him from making a potential push for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics was his long-time coach, who held him to a promise he made before retiring.
“My coach said to me, ‘No’,” Bolt explained.
“I remember when I was going to retire he said, ‘Listen to me, when you retire, you retire — you are not doing a comeback tour’.
“And then when I actually went to him and said, ‘Hey coach what do you think? Let’s go try for 2020’, he said, ‘No, we are not doing it.’
“I thought about it, but it was not on the cards for my coach.”
Bolt has had plenty of time to reflect on his illustrious career recently. Featuring in a new Apple TV documentary “Greatness Code”, he fondly spoke about exactly what went through his mind during each race.
And the recent birth of his first child, Olympia Lightning Bolt, has also helped put his life achievements in perspective.
Bolt said he felt he was “too old” to make a comeback now, but he can’t deny a fierce competitive streak still follows him in everyday life today.
“I play a lot of dominoes, so it is still there. I am very competitive,” he said with a chuckle.
“And I play online games too. If someone beats me, I want to play again. I kind of knew when I was going to retire, so I mentally got myself ready, and I still do a lot of work, and try to keep my hand in different businesses here and there.
“So I still have things going, but just to relax sometimes is good. I am happy. Being a parent now, it is different. It gives you a sense of accomplishment, so I am really happy and just excited to go on this journey.”
Bolt said while he can’t switch off his passion for competing, which no doubt helped him rise to become arguably the greatest sprinter of all time, he doesn’t want to put any pressure on his daughter to follow in his footsteps.
“I won’t push her to do sport,” he said.
“Everybody is already asking, ‘Is she going to run?’ But I won’t push her to do any sports. She can do whatever she wants, I am just here to support. (Fatherhood) has been good. It’s been just about living it and experiencing it day by day.”
With the Tokyo Olympics postponed to 2021 due to the coronavirus, Bolt’s flirtation with a 2020 comeback was doomed before it began anyway.
He is now content watching athletics from afar and seeing if anyone can rise to the same heights he did.
Bolt said he is hopeful that Olympic Games organisers would be able to hold the event in Tokyo next year as planned, but urged them to consider the health of athletes first and foremost.
“I think athletes would just be happy if it keeps (the 2021 date) because it’s the Olympics,” he said.
“We don’t know which way it’s going to go. If it’s not safe, then do not keep it (scheduled for 2021) because it’s a lot of athletes and a lot of people’s lives at stake.
“We will see what happens next year.” — nine.com
