How fast was Usain Bolt? Olympic legend's records

Usain Bolt was so fast that it's almost silly to try to put it into words. The Jamaican sprinter, who won eight Olympic gold medals and set multiple world records during an unprecedented decade of dominance in men's track, is by most metrics the fastest person of all time.

During his time as one of the most famous and accomplished athletes on the planet, Bolt specialized in the 100-meter and 200-meter sprints and was part of Jamaica's virtually unstoppable 4 x 100-meter relay team. From 2007 to 2017, he won the final in just about every possible event he entered at the Olympics and World Championships.

That meant a long string of accolades for the "Lightning Bolt," who is considered one of the greatest Olympians of all time.

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How fast was Usain Bolt?

No one has ever been recorded running 100 meters faster than Bolt did on August 16, 2009. Bolt posted a 9.58-second time in the final of the 2009 World Championships in Berlin. That broke his own, existing world record (set in the 2008 Olympics) by 0.11, the most significant improvement to the 100-meter world record since the advent of electric time-keeping.

The International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) says that between the 60-80 meter marks of that race, Bolt ran roughly 27.79 miles per hour, which is the highest recorded speed any human being has ever attained.

Bolt's best time in the 200 meters, 19.19 seconds, is also a world record. He was part of the Jamaican 4 x 100-meter relay team that broke a world record with a time of 36.84 seconds.

In events not recognized by the IAAF, Bolt has a world-best 14.35-second time in the 150 meters, and his top 300-meter time (30.97 seconds) is the fourth-best ever recorded.

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Usain Bolt medals and records

Medals

• 2007 Osaka World Championships - 200 meters (Silver)

• 2007 Osaka World Championships - 4 x 100-meter relay (Silver)

• 2008 Beijing Olympics - 100 meters (Gold)

• 2008 Beijing Olympics - 200 meters (Gold)

• 2009 Berlin World Championships - 100 meters (Gold)

• 2009 Berlin World Championships - 200 meters (Gold)

• 2009 Berlin World Championships - 4 x 100-meter relay (Gold)

• 2011 Daegu World Championships - 200 meters (Gold)

• 2011 Daegu World Championships - 4 x 100-meter relay (Gold)

• 2012 London Olympics - 100 meters (Gold)

• 2012 London Olympics - 200 meters (Gold)

• 2012 London Olympics - 4 x 100-meter relay (Gold)

• 2013 Moscow World Championships - 100 meters (Gold)

• 2013 Moscow World Championships - 200 meters (Gold)

• 2013 Moscow World Championships - 4 x 100-meter relay (Gold)

• 2015 Beijing World Championships - 100 meters (Gold)

• 2015 Beijing World Championships - 200 meters (Gold)

• 2015 Beijing World Championships - 4 x 100-meter relay (Gold)

• 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics - 100 meters (Gold)

• 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics - 200 meters (Gold)

• 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics - 4 x 100-meter relay (Gold)

• 2017 London World Championships - 100 meters (Bronze)

Records

• 100 meters - 9.58 seconds (world record)

• 150 meters - 14.35 seconds (world best, not recognized by IAAF)

• 200 meters - 19.19 seconds (world record)

• 4 x 100-meter relay - 36.84 seconds (world record, along with teammates Yohan Blake, Nesta Carter, and Michael Frater)

Is Usain Bolt still competing?

Bolt is not participating in the 2024 Olympics. The Jamaican's last major competition was the 2017 World Athletic Championships, where he sadly suffered a hamstring injury anchoring a 4 x 100 relay race.

Bolt has looked to soccer since then, appearing in non-competitive games for teams in Germany, South Africa, and Norway. After nearly signing for a team in Malta, Bolt spent eight weeks with the Central Coast Mariners in Australia, only for contract talks to fall through. In 2019, Bolt told Reuters that his "sports life is over," and that he would begin focusing on business and other concerns.

However, he has been a regular at celebrity soccer matches for charity. In June, Bolt tore his Achilles tendon playing in a game benefitting Soccer Aid for UNICEF.

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: How fast was Usain Bolt? The sprinter's Olympic records and medals