Speed racer

Animated Bolt completes sprint double with 200

BEIJING - Chasing a world record in the 200-meter dash, Usain Bolt saved his victory celebration for after the finish line. He took control of the race with his opening strides, cleared the field at the midway point, and stretched his advantage during the final 100. With history in mind, Bolt leaned across the line, racing to the finish for the first time at the Olympics. When he glanced at the results, Bolt saw the world record he desperately wanted with the clock stopped at 19.30 seconds.

"Everything came together," said Bolt. "I blew my mind and I blew the world's mind."

Bolt broke the world record Michael Johnson set at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics by two-100ths of a second and shattered his personal best of 19.67. By adding to the record he set in the 100 (9.69) Saturday night, Bolt became the first sprinter to break both the 100 and 200 world records at the same Olympics. He also became the first man to win gold in the sprint double since American Carl Lewis in 1984.

If the 6-foot-5-inch Bolt had turned left and right to gauge his gap on the competition - as he did in the 100 final - he would have needed a long look back. Silver medalist Shawn Crawford finished 0.66 seconds back, giving the new world record-holder the largest margin of victory ever in the Olympic 200.

"I looked at his start and just went, 'Wow,' " said Johnson, in race commentary he provided for the BBC. "Guys that tall should not be able to start like that. He used every ounce of energy; he wanted that record."

When it came to his postrace celebration, Bolt did not hold back, either. He raised his arms in exultation after he crossed the line. He lay down on the track with legs and arms spread, then covered his face with both hands in a mix of shock, relief, and exhaustion. He kneeled and kissed the surface that helped make him the greatest sprinter in history. He danced and blew kisses to the crowd while draped in a Jamaican flag. He mugged for the cameras with his golden Puma shoes with the message "UGO 200M Beijing" stitched onto the side. He mouthed the words "I'm No. 1."

While Bolt may not have the number of gold medals or world records that swimmer Michael Phelps possesses, his performances have generated the same kind of buzz around the Olympic Green. If Phelps was the face of Week 1 at the Beijing Olympics, Bolt has become the face of Week 2. He is certainly the transcendent figure of the track and field competition, capturing the imagination of capacity crowds of 91,000 at the National Stadium and many more worldwide.

"I've been saying all season that the 200 means a lot more to me than the 100 meters," said Bolt. "This world record means a lot to me because I've been dreaming of this since I was yea high. I know it means a lot to my country also. I talked to the prime minister and he told me everything in Jamaica is blocked off because everybody is in the streets. He told me I've written history and I'm proud of that."

Even in the hard-charging, often ego-driven world of men's sprinting, Bolt's competitors are in awe.

"That's what we call a phenom," said fourth-place finisher Brian Dzingai of Zimbabwe. "It's something you can't explain and he has it. I'm just proud to be part of the race. Hopefully, 50 years from now, my grandkids will actually make fun of me saying, 'Oh, you got beat by Usain Bolt.' For him to break that record is just crazy. That was the best world record out there still standing. It definitely means he's the best sprinter ever. I'm just happy to be part of history."

'Once in a century' talent

During his press conference, Bolt saw highlights of the day's Olympic action on a wall-mounted television screen to his left. Keeping a close eye on the screen, Bolt saw the 200 final appear. He turned to the reporters at the standing-room-only gathering and said, "Hold on." He took a quick look at the finish and smiled sheepishly. When asked what he was thinking as he watched his record-setting 200 finish for the first time, Bolt said, "That guy's fast."

Watching replays of his races, others might notice how Bolt dwarfs competitors. Taller and leaner than the typical sprinter, Bolt uses his size to his advantage. Each of his long, graceful strides covers more than 9 feet on the track. On average, more compact sprinters cover slightly less than 8 feet per stride. If Bolt and a smaller sprinter keep the same stride rate, the Jamaican still pulls away, making it look effortless.

"When you see someone of that size run that quickly, doing something physiologically that we've never seen before, then we are going to get incredible times," said Johnson at an IAAF press conference a few hours before Bolt broke his 200 record. "He has incredible leg speed and a long stride. That combination is deadly."

Added former world record-holding hurdler Renaldo Nehemiah, who watched Bolt live: "It's mathematics. Every step, he's that much farther ahead. You can do stride for stride, but if he's landing farther, he's going to continue to get farther and farther in front."

But Nehemiah doesn't foresee coaches recruiting and developing taller sprinters in the future. Bolt represents a unique talent, not necessarily an evolution of the modern-day sprinter. His success comes from more than his height. He possesses uncanny quickness, a strong competitive drive, and pure athleticism that makes him surprisingly agile. Describing just how unique Bolt is, Jamaican assistant track team coach Bertland Cameron, who specializes in the 400, said, "You won't see another one like that for another 50 years."

Others in the Jamaican track delegation attending the Games called Bolt a "once in a century" type of talent.

Bolt's height would be a less popular topic of conversation if he competed in the 400, where runners tend to have a more similar body type. But after running the 200 and 400 in high school and realizing the kind of training required to compete at the elite level in the longer of the two events, Bolt gravitated toward the 200. At 15, he became the youngest 200 winner at the World Junior Championships, making it hard to argue he should run the 400. Plus, ever since that victory, Bolt said the 200 "has been dear to my heart."

When there was an opportunity to add another event to his competitive schedule, Bolt lobbied his coach, Glen Mills, for the 100. For the sprinter, it was more an avoidance of the 400 than an interest in the 100. But now the 400 looms as the next frontier for Bolt. Given the speed and stamina Bolt showed surviving the rounds and winning the 100 and 200, a world record in the 400 seems eminently possible. Johnson set the 400 mark of 43.18 in 1999.

"I don't want to say anything too serious because my coach may just want me to run the 400 meters," said Bolt of making an attempt at the 400 world record. "Anything is possible if I put my mind to it like I did this season, to work really hard to come out here and do my best.

"A lot of people are hoping I'll go to the 400. Personally, I'm telling you guys, don't hold your breath. I don't think I'll be going to the 400 meters any time soon."

But does that preclude an appearance in the 400 at the 2012 London Olympics?

Jamaican national track team assistant coach Maurice Wilson, who specializes in the sprints, hinted that Bolt might try something special in four years. The implication was that he might run the 100, 200, and 400 in London, schedule permitting. Cameron, however, doesn't foresee Bolt in the 400 before the next Olympics.

"A coach would normally threaten him that if he don't run fast in the 100, you will run in the 400," said Cameron. "So, he makes sure he runs fast in the 100.

"He promised six years from now he will run the 400. When he gets tired of running the 100 and the 200, he'll move up."

He's a showstopper

Bolt entertained the National Stadium crowd with his version of the popular Jamaican dance the Gully Creeper, shaking his arms and legs as he walked slowly along the outside of the track. It was a salute to his country and his culture. Then again, his easygoing, fun-loving demeanor throughout the 100 and 200 competitions seemed a fitting tribute to his Jamaican roots.

During prerace introductions, he brushed his hands over his head and released an imaginary arrow. While other sprinters shifted their weight nervously before settling into the starting blocks, Bolt appeared to either sing or talk to himself while wiggling to an imaginary beat. In addition to his well-documented postrace antics on the track after his victories here, he made reporters laugh with details of his pre-competition Chicken McNugget consumption.

"I got up at 12 and my masseuse brought me nuggets because I didn't want to go to the cafeteria," said Bolt, describing his race-day schedule. "I came to the track and my masseuse brought me more nuggets. I just had two because my coach was saying I shouldn't have too much nuggets."

Although Bolt celebrates his 22d birthday today, he exudes the playfulness of someone much younger. He is sometimes goofy, sometimes mischievous. But he always likes playing to an audience. Apparently, it helps Bolt keep the calm energy needed to succeed in the 100 and 200.

"One of his greatest assets is not to take anything too seriously," said Wilson. "People think that he's boastful, but he's just comical."

His top competitors even enjoy the show.

"If this guy worked his tail off every day on his knees throwing up like I was in practice, then he deserves to dance," said Crawford. "If he feels good about the times he's doing, dance. You dance and you laugh and you have a good time when you know you've put in the work. If he put in the work, let him celebrate. If you think it's disrespectful, work harder, so you can be the one dancing. It don't bother me. I love it."

But after what Bolt accomplished the last six days, it may be a long time before another sprinter has anything to dance about. In any event, it is unlikely they will perform with the unique style for which Bolt has become famous on and off the track in Beijing.

Shira Springer can be reached at springer@globe.com.