Track star Usain Bolt : My first brush with death... and my first girlfriends

THIS is part five of the Observer's 10-part serialisation of Usain Bolt: My Story 9.58 - Being the World's Fastest Man, chronicling the life of triple Olympic and World champion Usain Bolt, from his early primary school days to the present time.

Bolt speaks from the heart in this revealing autobiography. From his experiences as a schoolboy athlete and his struggles with injuries; to his family life and performances at the 2008 Beijing Olympics and 2009 World Championships in Berlin, he recounts and shares, in his customary easy-going and candid style, his hopes and his regrets, and his plans for the future.

Inspiring and entertaining, this easy-to-read book at over 280 pages is in full colour and contains never-before-seen photographs of Bolt at work and at play. Testimonials from those who have had a major influence in the young athlete's life give the book a truly authentic voice. Enjoy:

We would play for hours down by the river (where) I almost drowned once. There were some concrete slabs in the water and we would swim from one to the other, but one time we were having a backstroke race and I misjudged where I was. When I went to stand up where I thought the concrete deck was, there was nothing. It was the weirdest sensation as I quickly sank and began to freak out as water rushed into my mouth and up my nose. Fortunately, I'd watched a programme only the week before which said that if you think you're drowning, the worst thing you can do is panic. Somehow I remembered it and managed to stop trying to breathe, went right down to the bottom, pushed off and came back to the surface. I can't describe the relief as I gulped in the fresh air...

I didn't go back to the river for a good two months after that and have been wary of water ever since. I might fool around in the swimming pool at my house or splash around on the beach, but that's about it...

When I started making decent money as an athlete it wasn't for me, it was for my parents. They have never lived a grand life and didn't want to move to some flash place away from the community so I helped them to extend their house and build a garden. My dad is weird, he doesn't like to ask for anything and prefers to work for his money. Mom will ask but that might only be for the bus fare back to Trelawny from Kingston.

Long before I was famous they were both well known in the community, and would help everyone out. Dad always had a 'good morning' and a 'good afternoon' for everyone, which is how I learned to be well-mannered and polite...

While I respect dad, I never felt he got the balance right between discipline and fun. If I wanted to go out, he would set ridiculous curfews -- as early as 10 o'clock at night, which was when all the parties were starting...

Despite that I did have a few girlfriends. The first was Kimlin Matteson, who went to William Knibb like me but didn't live nearby. When it came to school holidays there was no way of getting in touch, because we didn't have telephones in the house or cell phones. After Kimlin I went out with Nakeisha Neal from the year above, but we split when I was 17 and moved to Kingston to be a full-time athlete. It was there I met Mizicann Evans, and we had a good time together for nearly seven years. She was the only person I've ever argued with, probably because we got on each other's nerves after so long together. Sadly, we broke up but still see each other sometimes because she's good friends with mom.

source : The Jamaican observer