Usain Bolt star attraction at Sandals Grande

Sandals Grande St. Lucian welcomed the grandest sprinter of all time, Jamaican Usain Bolt, along with former West Indies Captains Daren Sammy and Dwayne Bravo at a special function on Thursday morning at the resort. In attendance were groups of athletes associated with several sports including golf, cricket, football, swimming and, of course, track and field.

By 9:00 am, the scheduled starting time, most of the young athletes were seated, waiting for the guest of honour to make an appearance. They waited a bit longer, in fact a full hour, before Bolt, accompanied by former West Indies Captain Daren Sammy and cricketer Dwayne Bravo, made his entrance. I’m guessing his appearance at the show Opium, had something to do with all three cricketers not being on time.

Sandals Regional Public Relations Manager, Sunil Ramdeen, referred to the occasion as “a very special moment for us” and said: “On behalf of Sandals I extend the warmest welcome to our guest Usain Bolt, our son of the soil Daren Sammy and we are also very honoured to have champion cricketer and someone who is now making waves in the recording industry as well, my good friend Dwayne Bravo.”

During his brief remarks, Sammy thanked Sandals for their contribution to sports,not only in Saint Lucia but across the Caribbean. He told the young sportsmen and women: “I see this as a massive opportunity for all you guys here to be in the presence of someone like Usain. As a child we all have our dreams and aspirations and to me there is no greater example than Usain.”

Bravo, who referred to Bolt as the greatest athlete in the world, said: “My dream was to play cricket; you know in the Caribbean, cricket is the number one sport. At an early age I knew I wanted to represent the Caribbean on the West Indies Cricket Team. I ask that you set yourself goals, whether you want to play cricket, football, basketball or track and field. Whatever you want to do in life, start thinking about it from now. Don’t think you have time on your hands, don’t wait until you get older. Be disciplined, be committed, and listen to your coaches, parents and fellow teammates.”

He continued: “If you are involved in sports, you have to be supportive of others. Be passionate about what you want in life. There will be people at some point in time who will try to take you down the wrong road. You should know which road you want to take. There is a good and a bad road. There is success and failures. When you fail, don’t think it’s the end of the road. You are allowed to make mistakes, you are allowed to fail. Just be determined, be hungry, know what you want in life and don’t let anybody say you cannot do it, or you cannot make it, or you can’t achieve.”

Managing Director of Sandals St Lucia, Winston Anderson, put Thursday’s function into his own personal perspective. “For me, this morning is a very touching moment. It is a very historic moment and I am sure more so for the youngsters—aspiring cricketers, golfers, tennis, swimming, track and field . . . they are all here today. To have three of the world’s greatest with us this morning is truly a special occasion.”

Anderson had the pleasure of introducing Bolt. However, for all intents and purposes, the world’s fastest human needed no introduction. After all, he is a globally-renowned figure, having set the 100m, 200m and 4x100m records. He has eight Olympic gold medals and 23 medals overall.

During his brief remarks, Bolt thanked Sandals and Digicel and mentioned his own foundation, all of which support young sportsmen and women. Having watched Sammy and Bravo play, Bolt said: “I know they are an inspiration to you guys because they are an inspiration to me, knowing that they represent the Caribbean.”

Said Bolt: “Growing up for me was always tough. I played cricket, football track and field.  For me, it was a passion and I enjoyed playing all these sports, growing up.” In the early years he was a big cricket fan, thanks to his father, and admitted that back then he supported Pakistan.

“Never give up, no matter what,” is the mantra Bolt implanted in the young athletes.    “Growing up, sports was something I enjoyed doing,” said Bolt. “You should always be passionate about anything you do. The road is not easy, a lot of people give up when they fail once, fail again and feel they should give up. I had injuries throughout my whole career. If I had given up, I would never have been the fastest man in the world.”

He spoke about his fierce determination to be the best in the world and continued pushing himself. “Throughout failures and struggles at times, I still really wanted to be at my best,” admitted Bolt. No doubt about it, throughout his career the world’s greatest sprinter was, by far and beyond, his very best.