Usain Bolt, the 33 year old Jamaican has been THE man to knock out on the track for quite some years. Dominating the 100 m and 200 m race ever since 2008 Olympics, Bolt was finally knocked down today. But not by a competitor, but by a Segway.
At the same place (Bird’s Nest, Beijing) in 2008, where Bolt showed the world that he was nothing short of a legend in the sport of track running, the 6 ft 5 inch Jamaican once again proved that he is still the No 1 sprinter in the world.
A few hours ago, Bolt won the 200 m race by recording a time of 19.55 seconds. This was much ahead of top rival and today’s first runner-up Justin Gatlin from the US. Watch the video below.
Unlike his win on 23rd August at the same venue, where he won the 100 m title by just 1/100th of a second, today’s was a much better finish. Bolt finished the 200 m race in just 19.55 seconds, beating the season’s best time of 19.57 seconds which was set by Justin Gatlin.
As is the case every-time, this time as well the win was followed by Bolt’s trademark celebration. But what happened while he was waving back at his supporters in the stadium, was nothing short of unthinkable.
A cameraman riding on Segway, just behind Bolt who was busy waving at his fans, lost control and went into the steel railing of the tracking camera. This started a chain reaction which ended in Segway knocking down Usain Bolt off his feet.
Bolt lost his balance due to the sudden impact and fell flat on his back. The fall was such that there was a moment when everyone watching the telecast LIVE feared for the worst. But luckily, Bolt soon got back up on his legs, and continued to wave at his fans.
Later at the press conference, Bolt jokingly mentions that – “The rumor I’m trying to start right now is that Justin Gatlin paid him off.” To which Gatlin replied – “I want my money back. He didn’t complete the job.”
After taking every possible precaution to keep his legs safe, on the field and off it, Bolt was taken down by the two wheels he least expected!