Usain Bolt is not someone to be told he can’t do something.

Take the 200m world record as a prime example, just moments after Michael Johnson implied his time would not be beaten Bolt went and broke it.

At the Beijing 2008 Olympics, Bolt ran 19.19s to break Johnson’s longstanding record of 19.32s.

In the same competition he also broke the 100m record running 9.69s, a time he bettered the year after.

Before the race Johnson said: “He’s going to do it, he’s going to break the 200m world record there’s no doubt about it. It’s just not going to happen this year.”

Johnson was presenting at the Olympics and witnessed Bolt break cement his legacy live in the stadium.

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“I said anytime he’s on the track it’s possible, and then I said I didn’t think he would,” Johnson joked.

It was the beginning of Bolt’s quick rise to fame as the face of athletics and arguably the Olympics beside all-time greats such as Michael Phelps.

In an interview with TNT Sports the Jamaican recalled: “It was the day before my birthday. They sang Happy Birthday to me at the stadium when I collected my medal the day after.

“For me, it’s my favourite event. I love to be the fastest man in the world but the 200m means a lot more to me because it’s something that I worked very hard to perfect.

“I remember the video that he [Johnson] put out saying ‘I don’t think he’s going to get it this trip’. And I got it, so it was even better!”

The two men have 12 Olympic gold medals between them and despite never racing each other there seems to be a spirit of rivalry around the pair.

Bolt won nine gold medals across an illustrious careerCredit: GettyJohnson also competed in the 400m winning two Olympic 

Johnson remains convinced that he would beat Bolt in a race ‘guaranteed’ because he is not the ‘most efficient runner’.

When Bolt was asked the question of him against the American he replied: “No way he’s going to beat me.”

Despite retiring in 2017 Bolt still remains the king of sprinting as both his world records still remain.

The question of who will break his records remains unanswered but Australian 17-year-old Gout Gout has made waves.

In December 2024, Gout ran 20.04s in the 200m and 10.04s in the 100m which is impressive considering he is still a teenager.

When asked about the Australian’s comparisons to Bolt, Johnson responded: “It’s a journey. So you don’t want to put too much pressure on this young kid, but he is a phenomenal talent.

“I’d like to see him just continue to be able to quietly and slowly develop into this because it’s a very difficult sport.”