August 5, 2017: A thunderous gathering would clearly be an understatement. The former Olympic stadium at Queen Elizabeth Park was packed with nearly 56,000 people to witness the last-ever show of a lightning bolt. The crowd had already picked their favorite, summoning Usain Bolt with glorious chants in unison long before he crouched down at the starting blocks of Lane 4 for the 100m event. A man with eleven World Championship titles, eight Olympic gold medals, three Diamond League trophies, and two world records was going to run his final lap. Everyone wanted him to clinch gold, but his defeat wasn’t totally unanticipated either. But what followed next was beyond comprehension!

As American Justin Gatlin took his position at Lane no. 8, crowds booed along, for he was a former drug cheat and was, in fact, banned by the IAAF twice, first in 2001 and then again in 2006. We say Bolt’s defeat was not entirely unanticipated considering the semi-final heats during the day had already hinted at the start of a promising career for a 21-year-old American. Christian Coleman edged out Bolt the exact same way in the finals as he did in the semis—A cold 0.01-second-worth-of-a-difference at the cusp of a glorious career ending and a young prodigal beginning in the history of the sport. Don’t mistake Coleman as the victor that night, however. Gaitlin timely left Coleman to eat dust by a difference of 0.02 seconds, ultimately clocking the race at 9.92. The crowd went radio silent for seconds until the booing gained momentum again, and Gaitlin’s celebratory response did little to calm the angry fans. Here’s why.

Gaitlin held his index finger to his lips to send out a warning to silence the crowd. After breaking into his villainous self, a humble Gaitlin bowed down to Usain Bolt only for Bolt to whisper something back in Gaitlin’s ears! The world wondered what that was all about. But now, we know what it was! In the YouTube podcast titled ‘Ready, Set, Go,’ released on 27th February, nearly a decade later, Usain Bolt finally lets Rodney Green in on what that tête-à-tête conversation was all about. He asked Gatlin, “Do you remember what I told you after 2017 when you won?”

Gatlin, without missing a beat, replied, “Yeah, I do, I do.” Then, the GOAT got real about Sha’Carri Richardson’s boyfriend Christian Coleman: “…I was happy to let the young cat win. Oh man, he’s just out of college! Bro, I hugged him. I was like, Bro, so happy that you (Justin Gatlin) won. I can’t, I couldn’t manage for this young kid to win.” Well, was Bolt serious? Not at all! He was all smiling remembering the 2017 WC. But yes, Coleman outpacing Bolt was a big feat. After all, it was his first World Championship, and that too lined up against the world’s best.

Further talking about Coleman’s performance, Bolt said, “He had a crazy start, but Coleman? That guy’s start is just ridiculous. I swear, when he took off, it felt like he was five miles ahead of me before I even got up.” And where’s the lie? In case you have watched the race, you would know Coleman just took a flight and was way ahead of his competitors once the race started. It was probably only in the last stretch that Usain and Justin managed to come near him.

Usain Bolt realized that Coleman had a great start in the semifinal heats itself. In the semis too, Christian Coleman managed to outperform Bolt by 0.01 seconds and won the heat. In the post-race press meet, Bolt said, “After the semifinal with Coleman, I knew if I don’t get my start, I’m going to be in trouble…And when I left the blocks (in the finals), I was like, ‘Awww.'” So, Bolt clearly saw this new champ in the making, and he didn’t regret hanging his shoes a bit. As Usain Bolt, himself said, “I came in third to a young kid that is coming up. He is a great talent and great future ahead of him. So no regrets….It’s time to go.”

Isn’t it true sportsmanship? Just look at how the legend still has only good things to say about Coleman even after almost eight years. But how did Coleman feel about it?

Christian Coleman got real about winning against Usain Bolt

Back in 2024, Christian Coleman looked back on his first World Championships in 2017, where he lined up against Usain Bolt in the legend’s final race. “Usain Bolt was in that race, and I was 21. That was a pretty big moment,” he recalled. Coleman also spoke about the intense competition in sprinting, saying, “There are some dogs in track and field, and you have to be a savage when you get out there.”Well, his ruthless approach to sprinting did reap great results when he faced track and field greats like Gatlin and Bolt in 2017.

But 2024 wasn’t the first time Christian Coleman expressed his feelings about the race. Even in the 2017 WC press meet, he said, “This whole season for me has been surreal… I’m happy to cap it off like this. I’m sitting up here on a podium with Usain Bolt and Justin Gatlin, guys I’ve looked up to my whole life.” And honestly, it was great surpassing Usain, that too twice in the 2017 WC.

Also, he must have been doing something right when even Bolt recognized his talent back in the day, calling him “I lost the race to a great competitor.” Since then, the soon-to-be 29-year-old hasn’t looked back, securing three World Championship golds.