Usain Bolt 12/1 to run at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics as Justin Gatlin wagers on his return

It wasn't supposed to be like that.

For a start, the British baton was meant to be lying on the floor, as usual, after yet a typically shambolic changeover.

It was all scripted for the greatest sprinter of all time, humbled seven days earlier in his quest for a seventh global 100m title, to bow out of athletics by anchoring Jamaica home to relay gold.

Preferably pipping the pantomime villain of his legendary career - aka Justin Gatlin - on the line in the most dramatic of finales.

Instead, sport served up one of its crueller twists, yet equally as captivating.

Because while a home team with no individual sprint medallists between them produced the collective performance of their lives by running the third fastest 4x100m relay time in history to snatch gold from the USA, Bolt was hobbling some 50 metres back before collapsing on the track in a heap.

The capacity crowd, commentators, millions watching at home - nobody knew where to look or quite how to react. So many contrasting stories unfolding in just a fraction of a second.

Of course Bolt's career will be remembered by his astonishing record-breaking achievements since 2008 and the charisma which made him so universally loved and celebrated around the globe, but the ending is rather Don Bradman- esque.

In years to come I wonder if the images of his final limping disappointment, which made him look so human after years of amazingly being anything but, will be the lasting ones?

A perfectly written tale of how even the mightiest can fall.

Some will emphatically say 'no'. But what about the people's champion himself?

After collecting a bronze in the 100m final, Bolt insisted he'd never perform a U-turn on his decision to retire, saying: "It doesn't change anything in my career, I have done everything I can do for the sport and for myself. It's time to go."

He reiterated that stance after his relay woe: "For me I don't think one championship is going to change what I've done. I remember after losing the 100m someone said to me, 'Usain, no worries, Muhammad Ali lost his last fight also, so don't be stressed about that'. I've seen too many people retire and come back into the sport just to make it worse or to shame themselves. I won't be one of those people."

He's previously made no secret of his wish to finally stop the training he hates for good and instead spend his time relaxing and enjoying more of the party lifestyle.

That will still be true, for now, but in regards to the parties he's known for, he did once admit to GQ magazine in an interview last year: "After a while that's gonna get boring."

He might find years of "chilling out" and "watching TV" boring too. There's a good chance he only enjoys that now as his reward from doing the kind of gut wrenching training required to be the fastest man in history.

Remember, he is only 30 - five years younger than Gatlin - and it's not as if there is an obvious, immediate long-term heir to his throne as the king of sprinting.

Give it a year or two, when another Olympics in Tokyo will be on the horizon, are you convinced his inner competitive nature won't urge him to be centre of global attention again?

Will the questions about how his career ended begin to rankle him too much?

He could just revert back to his 'banker' 200m. Especially if gold-medal winning time at the next World Championships is over 20 seconds again.

The term "unfinished business" is used a lot in sport and that could well apply to Bolt.

One man who would probably be more than tempted to back Sky Bet's special of 12/1 that he does indeed compete in Tokyo is Gatlin.

The world 100m champion has already even wagered $100 with the Jamaican icon that he one day returns to the track.

He said in the wake of the 4x100m final on Saturday night: "You can't really have this night or championship define what he's done in the past. From 2008 on, Usain Bolt has done amazing things. Tonight is not going to define who he is. He is still the man.

"This is a farewell tour, we take our hats off to him and we hope he gets better. I'm going to win my $100, he's coming back in a year or two. He'll be ready. He has a passion for the sport, he loves the fans, the fans love him. It's something you can't walk away too easy from."

There's no doubt athletics still needs Bolt.

And one day, Bolt may even need athletics again.

Usain Bolt's major medals

All gold unless stated

World Championships

London 2017 - 100m (bronze), 4x100m
Beijing 2015 - 100m, 200m & 4x100m
Moscow 2013 - 100m, 200m & 4x100m
Daegu 2011 - 200m & 4x100m
Berlin 2009 - 100m, 200m & 4x100m
Osaka 2007 - 200m (silver), 4x100m (silver)

Olympic Games

Rio 2016 - 100m, 200m & 4x100m
London 2012 - 100m, 200m & 4x100m
Beijing 2008 - 100m & 200m

Usain Bolt's World Records

100m - 9.58, set at the 2009 World Championships in Berlin

200m - 19.19, set at the 2009 World Championships in Berlin

4x100m relay - 36.84 secs, Jamaica's relay effort at the London 2012 Olympics

How Usain Bolt won his golds

2008 Olympic Games, Beijing - 100m

Bolt announced himself as a sporting superstar by storming to the 100m crown in a world record 9.69 seconds, even slowing down to celebrate before reaching the line.

2008 Olympic Games, Beijing - 200m

The Jamaican ended Michael Johnson's reign as world record holder by racing to victory in 19.30secs.

2009 World Championships, Berlin - 100m

Bolt shattered his world record with a run of 9.58s to take gold.

2009 World Championships, Berlin - 200m

The world's fastest man took the 200m mark to new heights by clocking 19.19.

2009 World Championships, Berlin - 4x100m relay

Bolt added a third gold with his Jamaican team-mates in the sprint relay in a time of 37.31.

2011 World Championships, Daegu - 200m

Having been sensationally disqualified from the 100m final for a false start, Bolt bounced back in the 200m, taking the title in 19.40.

2011 World Championships, Daegu - 4x100m relay

Bolt finished the championships with another gold and another world record as Jamaica won the relay in 37.04.

2012 Olympic Games, London - 100m

Bolt answered doubts about his form and fitness in emphatic fashion by defending his crown in 9.63, an Olympic record.

2012 Olympic Games, London - 200m

He became the first man in history to retain both the Olympic 100m and 200m titles, winning over the longer distance in 19.32 and declaring afterwards he was a ''living legend''.

2012 Olympic Games, London - 4x100m relay

Bolt left the capital with another world record in the relay, Jamaica winning in 36.84.

2013: World Championships, Moscow - 100m

The 26-year-old defied pouring rain and a drenched track to hold off Justin Gatlin and reclaim his crown in 9.77, his best time of the year.

2013: World Championships, Moscow - 200m

The world's fastest man blazed to victory with an emphatic performance at the Luzhniki Stadium, storming to glory in 19.66.

2013: World Championships, Moscow - 4x100m relay

Bolt took his World Championships career medal tally into double figures by anchoring Jamaica to gold in 37.36.

2015: World Championships, Beijing - 100m

Riding to the rescue of his beleaguered sport once again, Bolt dashed Gatlin's hopes of 100m in China. The Jamaican lived up to his billing as the saviour of athletics as he held off the challenge of two-time drug cheat to win in 9.79.

2015: World Championships, Beijing - 200m

Made it four straight half-lap world titles, blowing away Gatlin with a world-leading 19.55 time in front of a raucous Bird's Nest crowd.

2015: World Championships, Beijing - 4x100m relay

Bolt wrapped up another event to remember by anchoring Jamaica to victory in a world-leading time of 37.36.

2016 Olympic Games, Rio - 100m

Bolt overcame a now trademark sluggish start to power home in the final 50m and cross the line first in a season's best of 9.81, beating rival Gatlin into second.

2016 Olympic Games, Rio - 200m

Bolt targeted the world record ahead of the race but rain ruined that prospect and, although he was a comfortable winner, he had to settle for a season's best time of 19.78.

2016 Olympic Games, Rio - 4x100m

The 29-year-old completed what at the time was a 'triple triple' of Olympic sprint titles, taking the baton from Nickel Ashmeade and storming away from second-placed Japan on the final leg.

• Bolt was earlier this year stripped of his 4x100m relay gold medal from the 2008 Olympics after one of his team-mates, Nesta Carter, retrospectively failed a drugs test taken at the Beijing Games.

Related Athletics Links

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