The Bolt Supremacy

by Richard Moore

Overview

Beijing 2008: Usain Bolt slows down as he approaches the 100-meter finish line. He beats his chest, well ahead of his nearest rival, his face filled with euphoria, the world in thrall of his extraordinary talent. It is one of the greatest moments in sports history, and it is just the beginning.Of the ten fastest 100-meter times in history, eight belong to Jamaicans. How is it that this small island has come to dominate men’s and women’s sprinting? The Bolt Supremacy opens the doors to a community where sprinting permeates daily life; where the high school championships are watched by 35,000 screaming fans; where identity, success and status are forged on the track, and where "making it" means adoration and lucrative contracts. In such a society there can be the incentive for some to cheat. There are those who attribute Jamaican success to something beyond talent and hard work.Award-winning writer Richard Moore doesn’t shy away from difficult questions as he travels the length of this beguiling country speaking to antidoping agencies, scientists and skeptics as well as to coaches, superstars, and the young guns desperate to become the next big thing. Peeling back the layers, Moore finally reveals the secrets of Usain Bolt and the remarkable Jamaican sprint factory.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781681774695
Publisher:	Pegasus Books
Publication date:	05/09/2017
Sold by:	SIMON & SCHUSTER
Format:	eBook
Pages:	336
File size:	10 MB

About the Author

Richard Moore, a former racing cyclist, is a journalist and the author of several books, and has been longlisted for the William Hill Award. He is the author of Slaying the Badger and lives in the United Kingdom.

Table of Contents

Prologue 1

1 A Force Five Hurricane 7

2 The Wellspring 18

3 Bolt's Own Country 35

4 The Brotherhood 57

5 Donkey Man 72

6 The Architect 85

7 Cuban Swimming Pool Crisis 106

8 Shifting the Paradigm 117

9 Jets and Sharks 133

10 Healing Hans 153

11 Real As It Gets 167

12 Shock and Awe 178

13 The Beast 200

14 Threads 210

15 The Tester 233

16 Genes and Yams 245

17 The G of the Bang 260

18 After the Hurricane 284

19 The In-Between 302

Afterword: The Weeble 317

Acknowledgements 322

Editorial Reviews

04/10/2017
Sports journalist Moore (Slaying the Badger) probes the mystery of why the world’s fastest runners hail from one of the smallest Caribbean islands, exploring whether it’s the environment, genetics, or illegal doping. The author, clearly a fan of Usain Bolt, examines the legendary Jamaican track star’s life, from his rural origins and strict training to his global dominance and eventual diagnosis of scoliosis. He also asks some thorny questions about several failed drug tests of key athletes, the effectiveness of the Jamaica Anti-Doping Commission, and mysterious sport guru Hans-Wilhelm Muller-Wohlfaht. Eventually, a skeptical Moore attributes the current run of Jamaican successes to the culture in the traditional Maroon stomping grounds of Cockpit Country, the titanic coaching legacy of Herb McKenley, and the top-grade local athletic schools, Calabar, Kingston College, and St. Jago. Fans of Moore’s impressive work will be a bit disappointed that this is not an earth-shattering volume—it’s too full of inconclusive answers and speculation—but it is entertaining. (May)

Publishers Weekly

A fascinating account of how a Caribbean island came to rule the world in the art and science of running very fast indeed.

The Independent

Compelling . . . thoughtful and wide-ranging . . . leaves you feeling optimistic.

The Literary Review

His research and interviews with coaches, doctors, scholars, and athletes on and off the island is impressive. Fascinating reading for track fans.

Booklist

What this book does is capture the spirit of the sport in Jamaica. Moore clearly reveled in this grass roots exuberance and it is hard, reading this book, not to do so too.

Independent on Sunday

Entertaining and lively. Moore is an open-minded and engaging writer who's willing to hear his interviewees out. Because maybe there is something in the yams, and maybe we can all still enjoy the dream.

Esquire UK

His research and interviews with coaches, doctors, scholars, and athletes on and off the island is impressive. Fascinating reading for track fans.

Booklist

"Excellent." —Times

"Absorbing." —Guardian

"Entertaining and lively. Moore is an open-minded and engaging writer who's willing to hear his interviewees out. Because maybe there is something in the yams, and maybe we can all still enjoy the dream." —Esquire

"A fascinating account of how a Caribbean island came to rule the world in the art and science of running very fast indeed." —Independent

"Compelling . . . thoughtful and wide-ranging . . . leaves you feeling optimistic." —Literary Review

From the Publisher

05/01/2017
Hard on the heels of Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt's transcendent Olympic Games victories (Beijing 2008; Rio 2016), Moore (The Dirtiest Race in History) takes a look at the athlete dubbed the world's fastest man and examines how Jamaica became known for track and field. From childhood, young Jamaicans are groomed for speed by dream teams of doctors, coaches, and trainers. Those who succeed, like Bolt, are embraced as national heroes. Is the secret in their training, the culture? Can a runner actually accelerate, as Bolt seems to do? To answer these questions, Moore delved into life on the Caribbean island, interviewing doctors, trainers, and runners at all levels, and investigating the thorny issue of performance-enhancing drugs and drug testing among elite athletes, ultimately revealing the unique aspects of Jamaican life that continue to produce international superstars. VERDICT Usain Bolt taps into our human fascination with speed, giving this book high appeal to track and Olympics fans and curious readers beyond the sports world.—Janet Davis, Darien P.L., CT

Library Journal