Usain Bolt (in the pic) on the track, Michael Phelps in the water and Yelena Isinbayeva through the air elevated three elemental Olympic sports into another realm at the Beijing Games, the highlight of 2008's sporting calendar.
Bolt, a languid, elongated Jamaican, redefined the adjective laidback while outlining his hobbies before the third Asian Olympics. "Doing nothing and relaxing," drawled Bolt.
A late decision to add the 100 metres to his specialist 200 spelled an end to the quiet life. Instead Bolt electrified capacity crowds at the spectacular Bird's Nest stadium with the greatest 100-200 double since the modern Games began in 1896.
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After stunning the sporting world by clocking a world-record 9.72 seconds in only his fifth professional race over the 100 earlier in the season, Bolt reduced the mark to 9.69 in the Olympic final.
Incredibly, he became the first man to run under 9.7 while glancing left and right at the finish and crossing the line with his left shoelace undone.
In the 200, Bolt was swift out of the blocks and ran a perfect turn to clock 19.30 and break Michael Johnson's 1996 world record which statisticians had predicted would last 25 years. Johnson, commentating for the BBC, shook his head in wonder. "Simply incredible," he said. "This guy is Superman II."
Photographs and Text: Reuters
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