A new Usain Bolt

By Sigi Heinrich

When something extraordinary has happened, you always believe that another number has been created for eternity. I should know better. Over and over again, numbers suddenly become just smoke and mirrors and eternity is redefined. I have commented on every one of Usain Bolt's big races. All the World Cup races, all the Olympic decisions and I started dealing with the Bolt phenomenon pretty early on. In my personal archive, which consists entirely of paper, there is an article from 2004. In Kingston (Jamaica), a young guy who was just 17 years old ran the 200m in under 20 seconds. It was exactly 19.93 seconds. It seemed almost unimaginable. With 17 years. Well, he had previously become youth and junior world champion.

But this time at this age was the first exclamation mark. So grab the scissors and put them in the folder. The general world record at the time was 19.32, set by Michael Johnson in a fascinating race at the Olympic Games in Atlanta. And I can still remember that I carelessly thought back then that I probably wouldn't live to see anyone beat such a fabulous time. It was a gross misjudgment, fortunately also in my favor, because I'm still commentating on the athletics competitions at the Olympic Games in Tokyo. Usain Bolt shattered Johnson's time at the World Championships in Berlin in 2009 when, in addition to breaking the world record of 9.58 seconds in the 100m, he also ran 200 seconds in the 19.19m. This has been a bit overlooked because the 100m is the ultimate race because everyone believes that this is where the fastest person in the world is determined. The 200m doesn't have to be behind the 100m in terms of speed. And Bolt always loved the 200m and perhaps he was even a better runner over this distance than over 100m, especially since the longer sprint distance is more difficult because the top speed of well over 40km/h is achieved in the curve and the centrifugal forces still have to be overcome . But the 19.19 are still the measure of things. Erriyon Knighton: A young American is causing a sensation Still, because a young man who is reminiscent of Bolt appeared in the USA. Erriyon Knighton from Florida is 17m tall at 1,91 years old. Only four centimeters shorter than Bolt but he is already faster than Bolt was at that age. Knighton not only easily beat world champion Noah Lyles in the final of the Olympic qualification in Eugene, but also broke Usain Bolt's junior world record for the second time in a weekend, which now stands at 19.84 seconds. I watched the races of this exceptional talent and the similarities with the Jamaican are amazing. In addition to the size, there are also the gestures. In the semifinals he only ran in place and during the race, shortly before the finish, he looked around a little at his competitors who were behind him. Like Bolt used to. Erriyon Knighton has qualified for the Olympics. The hype is already huge And there is already a lot of hype surrounding him. At the age of 15 he signed a contract with a German shoe manufacturer, like Bolt. However, with its competing company in Herzogenaurach. Bolt was at Puma, Knighton is at adidas. And Usain Bolt's self-confidence also seems to have rubbed off on Knighton. “I did what I had to do,” he said after his win. Just as if he hadn't expected anything else anyway. And yet some caution is still required. The memories of Bolt's career should be a bit of a warning for Knighton, because the Jamaican, who won gold in the 100m and 200m at three consecutive Olympic Games, also had to take a backseat in his first major appearances after his junior days. At the Olympic Games in Athens he was eliminated in the preliminary round, and he also had to give up the World Championships the following year in Helsinki in 2005 due to injury. And in 2007 at the title fights in Osaka, Tyson Gay was a bit faster than Bolt, who then took over the reign in the sprint from 2008 and remained unbeatable for eight years, apart from a false start in the World Cup final in Daegu. Erriyon Knighton is already making a splash at a young age. © APA/getty / ANDY LYONS

So Usain Bolt had to exercise a little patience at the beginning of his ultimately inimitable career. It is to be hoped that Erriyon Knighton has advisors and trainers around him who know that the stars cannot be plucked from the sky like ripe cherries. But at least the so-called “Trials” in the USA have shown that athletics is alive, and even that it is lively. And one thing has become clear once again. There are no results that last forever, although eternity is of course a flexible term. In any case, I wouldn't mind if I could comment on a new 200m world record or a new 100m record. That would be possible in terms of time. Erriyon Knighton should be ready in two or three years. Or another skyscraper, because the reservoir of talent in the USA seems to be almost inexhaustible.

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A new Usain Bolt

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