When did Usain Bolt retire? How many Olympic medals did he win?

Usain Bolt’s name first started being heard outside of his native Jamaica at the start of the new millennium, when he became the youngest athlete to win a gold medal, after winning the 200m at the 2002 World Junior Championships.

Within the next two years his profile had grown to such an extent that he was selected to represent his country in the sprint events at the Athens Games in 2004 at the age of 18. But his Olympic debut ended in disappointment - he was eliminated in the first round heats, clocking 21.05 in the men’s 200m.

Bolt’s meteoric rise

But just when it seemed that his career in athletes might end before it had really started, Bolt managed to turn his fitness problems around with a vigorous training regime. Thanks to his physical preparation and incredible genetic make-up, he converted himself into the greatest sprinter in history, winning 11 world titles between 2009 and 2015.

Bolt cemented his status as sports legend at the Olympic Games. What he missed out on in Athens, he made up for at subsequent editions. In Beijing, he broke his own world records in the 100m and 200m (9.69 and 19.30 respectively). He did the sprint double again four years later in London, adding gold in the 4x100m relay. At his last Olympics, Rio 2016, he continued to make history, finishing first in all three sprint events.

When was Usain Bolt’s final race?

Rio would turn out to be his final Olympics. The following year, he had decided to call time on his athletics career. His final individual race was at the 2017 World Athletics Championships in London. His finished third in the 100m behind Justin Gatlin and Christian Coleman. There was still a chance for gold in the 4x100m relay but agonizingly, he pulled up with a hamstring injury in the final straight, denied of a medal in his final race”.

Bolt told ESPN that he would be moving on to new, different ventures. “I’m now moving into different businesses, I have a lot of things in the pipeline, so as I say, I’m just dabbling in everything and trying to be a business man now”.

Following his retirement from athletics, Bolt remained involved in sport, playing football for Central Coast Mariners and participating in the charity event Soccer Aid. In June 2018, he made his debut for Norwegian side Strømsgodset, ending on the losing side in the game against the national Under-19s side. It was to be his final attempt at becoming a footballer.

Since then, he has turned his hands to many things - he launched his own clothing brand and scooter business, dabbled with music and DJing and became a father.

Right now that is where he focuses his energies - looking after his family and three children. He combines his home life with several other business activities and published his autobiography, Faster than Lightning in 2013.