5 athletes who defeated Usain Bolt in his professional career ft. Justin Gatlin

By Animesh Pandey

Modified Nov 10, 2024 06:37 GMT

Usain Bolt of Jamaica is undoubtedly one of the greatest athletes of all time. He holds the world record for the men's 100m, men's 200m, and men's 4x100m relay as a part of the Jamaican team that won gold in the 4x100m relay event at the London Olympics in 2012.

In his 15-year-old career in international track and field, Bolt has a near-cent percent record in terms of winning races. Even at the Olympics, Bolt lost only once throughout his career. At the Athens Olympics in 2004, the Jamaican sprinter had a forgettable outing, finishing fifth overall in the preliminaries of the men's 200m event, with a timing of 21.05 seconds.

However, that doesn't mean the Jamaican sprinter never lost a race. Before his rise at the Beijing Olympics, Bolt had lost twice: once in the 200m event at the IAAF World Cup held in Athens to Wallace Spearmon of USA, and then to Tyson Gay in the men's 200m event at the World Championships held in Osaka.

Bolt also lost his final race to American sprinters Justin Gatlin and Christian Coleman, when he finished 3rd overall in the men's 100m finals at the World Athletics Championships 2017, organized in London.

Here are some of the athletes who outperformed Usain Bolt in his professional career at least once.

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Athletes who defeated Usain Bolt in his professional career ft. Justin Gatlin

#5. Yohan Blake

Usain Bolt and Yohan Blake in action at the 100m finals at London Olympics 2012 [Image Source : Getty]

In 2011, the unexpected happened. At the World Athletics Championships held in Daegu, South Korea, Usain Bolt was expected to add yet another gold medal to his kitty. However, an unexpected false start pulled him out of contention at the last minute, and Yohan Blake took full advantage of the golden opportunity at hand.

A year later, Blake proved that his victory was no fluke. Before the Jamaican Olympic trials, he defeated Bolt at the Cayman Invitational in the 100m and 200m events. Blake almost defeated Bolt in the finals of the 100m at the London Olympics, until a late surge helped the latter break the Olympic record with a timing of 9.64 seconds.

#4. Asafa Powell

Asafa Powell [Extreme Left] in action at the Beijing World Championships 2015 [Image Source : Getty]

Before Bolt became the talk of the town in the field of athletics, it was the Jamaican sprinter Asafa Powell, who ruled the roost. He had also defeated Bolt once at the IAAF Super Grand Prix held in Stockholm in 2008, only months before the Beijing Olympics, which were held the same year. Sadly, Powell could never sustain the momentum.

#3. Christian Coleman

Christian Coleman [L] competing with Usain Bolt at the London World Championships 2017 [Image Source : Getty]

Coleman is one of the few runners who has beaten Usain Bolt and is still active in the track and field circuit. When Justin Gatlin had beaten him at the World Championships in London, Coleman raced ahead to claim the silver medal, with a modest timing of 9.94 seconds.

#2. Tyson Gay

Another man who managed to beat Usain Bolt, and yet never win an individual Olympic gold medal was American sprinter Tyson Gay. He managed to beat the Jamaican sprinter a couple of times, including the World Championships at Osaka in 2007, where he won the gold medal in the 200m event.

#1. Justin Gatlin

Justin Gatlin with Usain Bolt and Christian Coleman at the victory ceremony of the 100m finals at the World Athletics Championships [Image Source : Getty]

Before Usain Bolt, it was Justin Gatlin who called the shots in the 100m event. However, a doping violation case kept him off the field for four years until the London Olympics in 2012, when he made a strong comeback.

In the next four years, Gatlin gave Bolt a run for his money. The Jamaican sprinter was almost denied a grand farewell when Gatlin made a strong headstart in the 100m finals at the Rio Olympics in 2016. Despite losing to Bolt eventually, Gatlin marked his presence, the time difference between him and Bolt being almost negligible.

The American sprinter had the last laugh when he won the 100m finals at the World Athletics Championships in 2017 in London, which was Bolt's last individual race. Gatlin won the gold medal with a timing of 9.92 seconds.