Usain Bolt miffed about Olympic rules for athletes
LONDON – Olympic security officers have confused London 2012 superstar Usain Bolt by refusing to loosen a series of "weird" rules and regulations.
Bolt stormed to a spectacular victory in the 100 meters Sunday night, but admitted he's been frustrated by the restrictions imposed upon athletes in the Olympic Village.
"There are a lot of rules, oh my God," Bolt said a couple of hours after clocking a record time of 9.63 seconds. "It has been OK, but it has been different from Beijing. There are lots of rules, weird, silly rules that don’t make any sense to me.
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"I tried to wear my tie into [Olympic Park]. They said, 'No.' I said why? 'Because of the rules,' they said. Then I wanted to bring my skipping rope in and they said no because it’s the rules. These rules just don’t make sense to me."
London Olympic officials have imposed tight security measures in the interest of both safety and protecting the branding rights of Games sponsors. However, some of the regulations have attracted heavy criticism from fans, the public, and now Bolt.
Every Olympic athlete was given a long list of rules governing their behavior, including what they can't take into the venue where they are competing and restrictions on their use of social media. Bolt's annoyance at the measures hardly seemed to have any negative impact on his form.
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Bolt will run again in the 200 meters and 4x100 relay later this week as he seeks to repeat his golden triple from the 2008 Games in Beijing. Many believed countryman Yohan Blake and Americans Tyson Gay and Justin Gatlin could push Bolt close, but he burst past them all.
Once again full of confidence, Bolt has set his sights on his own world record of 19.19 when he lines up for the 200.
"It’s been on my mind a couple of years now," Bolt said. "… On this track, feeling more confident in myself – we’ll see. I don’t want to say I can do it and then not do it. But it’s on my mind."
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