LONDON, England ● Jamaican track star Usain Bolt Thursday said he was over his recent problems and “ready to go” for the London Olympics — but added he wouldn’t be devastated if he lost.
“I’m always ready,” said the reigning 100m and 200m title-holder. “It’s all about championships. I’ve had slight problems, but I’m ready to go.”
Fitness concerns, an early morning car crash and losing both the 100m and 200m to training partner and compatriot Yohan Blake at the Jamaican Olympic trials raised serious doubts about Bolt’s ability to defend his titles.
But Bolt, speaking at his first pre-Olympic press conference alongside fellow sprinter Asafa Powell, said: “I’m going to focus on going out there to win.
“My back was a little stiff and it affected my hamstring but I’m over that. I’ve been training for the past two-and-a-half weeks and everything is all right.”
However, the 25-year-old said he had not yet decided whether he would run the 4x100m relay, which he also won with Jamaica in 2008. And he admitted he had contemplated defeat in the individual sprints.
“I don’t think it will be the end of the world if I lose,” said Bolt.
“I would definitely be disappointed if I was second. Mentally though I am always strong. I have a great team around me who keep me on track.”
Bolt refused to pick out any one sprinter as his main rival, saying: “Who is the danger man? Not one specific one but the seven men in the blocks.
“There is one great moment, there is never one single person.”
He also played down rumours of an increasingly bitter rivalry between him and fast-rising training partner Blake, the 100m world champion who is also coached by Glen Mills.
“People were saying I was training early in the morning and Blake in the evening, but that’s not true,” Bolt said.
“We do everything or nearly everything (together). Training hasn’t changed, only the atmosphere at competition.”
Bolt received an extra boost when Jamaica Olympic Association president Mike Fennell named him as the country’s flag-bearer for Friday’s opening ceremony.
“It’s an honour to carry the flag for my country. I would do anything for my country,” said Bolt. “It’s great being the flag-bearer as you are the centre of attention and on TV!”
Bolt, one of global sport’s most marketable personalities, transformed the world of athletics when he scorched to victory in both sprint events at the Beijing Games in 2008 in then-world record times.
He then bettered his Olympic form at the 2009 Berlin worlds, setting current world records in the 100m and 200m of 9.58 and 19.19sec.
Bolt defended his world 200m title in Daegu last year but a false start in the final saw Blake claim victory in the 100m.
Bolt was also part of the 4x100m relay team that won gold in Beijing and Berlin, and then went on to set a new world record of 37.04sec in Daegu.
“My ultimate aim is to be a legend — everyone knows it,” he said. “I’ve learned not to worry about the start. Back in the day was never a good start. I am just focused on the race.
“I will definitely carry on if I achieve my goals here. I will just set myself new ones. It will definitely be less stressful for me, more relaxed.”
Speaking of more immediate aims, Bolt said he had been working hard on his preferred 200m on the back of his first loss in the event in more than four years, to Blake at the trials.
“I have been doing a bit more work on the 200m and it’s coming back to me,” he said. “I’ve just got to go back to the days when I didn’t worry about the start and solely focus on execution.”
And he added that his participation in the 4x100m relay was not a done deal.
“I always see how I come out of the 200m before I decide, like if I’m tired etc. If I feel up to it, why not? For my country I would always do what is necessary.”