Usain Bolt has had a lot to say about substance abuse over the many years of his career. The Jamaican athlete had been dominant in an era when the sports realm witnessed several doping controversies in track and field. Surprisingly, a few of those charges were pressed on Bolt’s colleagues! Remember Justin Gatlin’s suspension in 2006 after USADA found him guilty of taking testosterone? Yet another instance had a major repercussion for the track and field sensation!

We are referring to the Nesta Carter incident. The Jamaican helped the Bolt-starring men’s 4x100m relay team win gold in the Beijing Olympics. However, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) found his test results positive in 2016 for consuming performance-enhancing drugs. Bolt had to pay a high price for this- he had to lose his precious gold medal. Nonetheless, the legendary sprinter remained clean.

That’s how the legend is remembered across his sports career. However, there were moments in Usain Bolt’s life when he was on thin ice- he could have easily gone rogue! Indeed, the Olympian faced moments when he had to make a choice. One such moment occurred during his adolescence. He broke the story.

Usain Bolt revealed the loose moment of his athletic career 

 Usain Bolt’s performance at the Kingston IAAF World Championships 2002 shot him to fame. He competed in the 200m and 4x100m relay races and crushed both! In the 200m final, he took 20.58 seconds to claim the title. His team missed the top place in the relay. He took the silver. However, the performance boosted his confidence. He suddenly had a fan following! In his autobiography, Faster Than Lightning, Bolt confessed, “Girls wanted to hang with me because I’d been in every single newspaper in the country and I was the local celebrity.” Everyone wanted to touch the “local celebrity.” And there came the budding athlete’s test. 

Usain Bolt’s new life drenched in fame bore risks for him. In his autobiography, Bolt confessed, “One time I even tried g***a, which I know sounds like a pretty messed-up admission coming from an Olympic gold medallist, but straight up it was something I did only once, and I regretted it immediately, even though when I lived out in the country, lots of people smoked the stuff.” Even though c******s  is not a performing-enhancing drug, it is still banned under the World Anti-Doping Agency’s rulebook. Banned or not, you shall never catch the sprinter going that way again!

Another time, Usain Bolt tried a joint during one of his encounters at the football field. This time too, his experience was far from enjoyable.  Bolt has narrated the incident in “Faster than Lightning”: “As soon as I sucked on the rolled-up cigarette, I hated it.”  That was the red signal for him. He never returned to that bumpy road again. Rather, during the last days of his professional career, the Jamaican sent out his message on the issue- loud and clear. 

The legend’s crusade against the bane

There were thousands of flashbulbs waiting for Usain Bolt in the 2017 World Athletics Championships. Being at the very top for a decade, he was used to this. It was Bolt’s last prime contest in his vast and illustrious professional career. The old guard did not want to leave the stage without sending his powerful message to the athletic world. The message was for those who came under the scanner for consuming banned performance-enhancing substances.

 Bolt unequivocally stated during a press conference, “I’ve always been strong on doping. I feel like athletes should get life bans. If you go out of your way to cheat to be a better athlete I feel you should get life bans, that’s a fact.” The next moment, he brought his example. Talk about life coming full circle! “I’ve proven to the world you can do it. You can be great without doping, that’s one of the things I want to preach to the younger kids.”, said the living legend. Usain Bolt leads his life by example. This is what makes him a favorite worldwide, that’s for sure!