In What Was Likely The Last Individual Race Of His Career, Usain Bolt Lost The 100M For The First Time In Over A Decade

Did not see that coming pic.twitter.com/yYy82fsaib

— Joe Fleming (@ByJoeFleming) August 5, 2017

FTW- Usain Bolt had not lost in a decade, and with such consistent dominance over the rest of the sprinting field, it was assumed the Jamaican runner would cruise to his 12th world championship and win his last 100-meter race before retiring.

But not only did Bolt lose, he finished third to Americans Justin Gatlin and Christian Coleman in a shocking upset and sour end to the GOAT’s career.

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And in an unexpected - if not ironic - turn of events, life has finally gotten it's revenge on Usain Bolt. It got it's chance to come at him fast after he had spent the vast majority of his career casually cruising through it with the quickness of a coked up gazelle with a rocket up it's ass, and it most certainly did not disappoint.  

Seriously, is there a better example of just how difficult it is to go out on top than the superhuman athlete that's been making fellow Olympians look "Special" since George W. was in office losing (likely) the last individual race of his career? When we talk about aging stars on the downside of their career we usually euphemistically say that they have "lost a step". When you consider that Usain Bolt set the 100M record at 9.52 in 2009 and got handed a bronze medal (that might as well be a novelty penny relative to his current trophy case) for strolling in at 9.95, he quite literally went from the top of the world to the bottom of the podium with the slightest of downticks in foot speed. The same guy that was literally smiling in the rearview during the heat of the best competition in the universe less than a year ago is going to bow out as something we never thought we'd refer to him as...a mortal.

I know the tone of this thus far has come across as vengeful, but that's simply symbolic of just how unforgiving the combination of age and athletics can be. Sure, (as the following photo showcases) this result serves as a metaphorical passing of the baton to the next generation of sprinters. However, it also serves as a reminder that 'Father Time' has a twisted sense of humor and would make a hell of a distance runner because he's guaranteed to catch up to you at the end if you give him enough of his namesake. 
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