#2 | Male Athlete of 2015

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Usain Bolt Remains On Top of His Championship Game 

Usain Bolt has shown time and time again that championships are his forte, and the 2015 World Championships was no exception as the Jamaican added three more titles to his collection of accolades. 

Going into the World Championships in Beijing, the six-time Olympic Champion was not necessarily considered the favorite to win the 100m and 200m. A nagging injury in the summer left BoltÂ’s form in question heading into the meet, and his biggest rival Justin Gatlin entered the competition with a 9.74 100m seasonÂ’s best. Bolt on the other hand had only run 9.87 prior to the meet. The semifinal did not look very promising either as Bolt stumbled out of the blocks, but still managed to win his heat. Gatlin ran his way to a 9.77 victory in his race. 

The lead-up performances were soon forgotten as Bolt ran his way to a narrow victory over Gatlin. In front of an electric crowd at the Birds Nest, Bolt edged out the American by just 0.01 seconds for the victory in a seasonÂ’s best of 9.79. The performance was BoltÂ’s fastest 100m run since the 2013 World Championships final in Moscow, where he beat Gatlin once again for gold.



The larger than life sprinter carried the momentum from the 100m final into the 200m where he brought home another gold medal for Jamaica. Bolt blew by Gatlin once again in a world leading time of 19.55, 0.45 seconds faster than his previous seasonÂ’s best which he ran in the semifinal. Gatlin trailed for silver in 19.74. 

Bolt capped off his World Championship run as a member of JamaicaÂ’s 4x100m relay where he anchored the yellow, green and black to a sizable victory over runner-up China and third-place Canada. The teamÂ’s winning time of 37.36 earned a world lead and the countryÂ’s seventh gold medal of the meet. 

The performances in Beijing reiterate the fact that no matter the circumstances heading into a championship, Bolt knows how to perform when it matters most. 

“I’m a true champion. I’ve shown over the years that when it comes to big championships, I live for them,” Bolt said.