Usain Bolt's Triple Gold at the 2008 Beijing Olympics

At the 2008 Beijing Olympics, a lanky 21-year-old Jamaican sprinter named Usain Bolt produced the most electrifying three performances in Olympic track history. On August 16, he won the 100 meters in 9.69 seconds — a world record, set while visibly slowing down and spreading his arms in celebration before the finish line. Experts estimated he could have run 9.55 had he sprinted through. On August 20, he shattered Michael Johnson's 12-year-old 200-meter world record with a time of 19.30 seconds, running into a headwind. On August 22, he anchored Jamaica's 4x100 meter relay to gold in 37.10 seconds, another world record. Three events, three golds, three world records. Standing 6'5" (196 cm), Bolt defied the biomechanical orthodoxy that tall sprinters couldn't accelerate quickly enough. His combination of height, stride length (covering 100 meters in just 41 steps), and explosive power was unprecedented. He would go on to repeat the triple-gold at both the 2012 London and 2016 Rio Olympics, completing the unprecedented "triple-triple" — nine Olympic gold medals across three Games. His charismatic celebrations, including the signature "Lightning Bolt" pose, made him the most famous and beloved track athlete since Jesse Owens.