He says his generation ‘just more talented’ than today’s
Legendary sprinter no longer runs and is ‘into Lego now’
Usain Bolt made his comeback to the world of track and field on Sunday night and, for a moment, it was like the good old days. There was his trademark To Da World pose before the 100m finals. The cheers and adulation of 60,000 fans in Tokyo’s National Stadium. A reminder of glories past.
The 39-year-old Jamaican had not watched athletics at all since retiring in 2017 until seeing Melissa Jefferson-Wooden and Oblique Seville win gold. And, as he also admitted, he now spends his time streaming movies and building Lego – and even gets out of breath when he walks up stairs.
However, when asked why the new crop of sprinters is not as quick as his generation, despite the advances in spike and track technology, Bolt’s competitive instincts fired back to life. “You want the real answer? We’re just more talented,” he said. “That’s all I’m saying. Of course, it shows when it comes to the men. You can see the women are different. They’re running faster times and faster times. So it shows – it has to be the talent.”
