Despite breaking multiple sprinting world records, Usain Bolt suffered from an incurable medical condition during his illustrious career.
Bolt, 39, currently holds both the 100m and 200m world records – with times of 9.58 seconds and 19.19 seconds respectively – which he set at the 2009 World Athletics Championships in Berlin, Germany.
The eight-time Olympic gold medallist also holds the current 4x100m record alongside his Jamaican team-mates Yohan Blake, Michael Frater and Nesta Carter, with a time of 36.84 seconds at the 2012 London Olympic Games.
The 39-year-old will undoubtedly go down in the athletics history books as one of the greatest of all time, but very few fans are aware of the incurable medical condition the Jamaican coped with during his career.
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Bolt was born with scoliosis, which is a condition where the spine twists and curves to one side.
As per the NHS, signs of the condition include a visibly curved spine, leaning to one side, uneven shoulders, one shoulder or hip sticking out, the ribs sticking out on one side, and clothes not fitting well.
Symptoms include back pain, but most people can live normal lives, including competing in sport, which Bolt certainly took to the extreme.
Speaking to ESPN in 2011, the Jamaican explained: “When I was younger, it wasn't really a problem. But you grow, and it gets worse. My spine's really curved bad [makes ‘S’ shape with finger].
“But if I keep my core and back strong, the scoliosis doesn't really bother me. So I don't have to worry about it as long as I work hard. The early part of my career, when we didn't really know much about it, it really hampered me because I got injured every year.”
In a 2024 interview with the High Performance Podcast, he added: “I have scoliosis in my back, so it was an issue that always bothered me throughout my career, but it was something that I managed very well. It was a tough time, but I had the right team, I was dedicated, and everything came together at the right time.”
A 2017 New York Times article suggested that the condition may have even benefited Bolt on the track, despite it making “his right leg half an inch shorter than his left”.
Other notable sufferers include former England cricket captain Andrew Strauss, former Olympic powerlifter Lamar Gant, and ex-Romanian gymnast Alexandra Marinescu.
Topics: Usain Bolt, Olympics, Athletics
Luke Davies