Donovan Bailey - Definition and Overview

Donovan Bailey with one of his Olympic gold medals.

Donovan Bailey (born December 16, 1967) is a Canadian athlete.

Born in Manchester, Jamaica, Bailey immigrated from Jamaica to Canada at age 13, and played basketball before his graduation. He began competing as a 100m sprinter part-time in 1991, but he didn't take up the sport seriously until 1994. At that time, he was also a successful stockbroker.

The following year saw his international breakthrough. At the World Championships in Gothenburg, Bailey won both the 100 metre sprint and the 4 x 100 metre relay titles.

He repeated that double win at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, setting a world record of 9.84 seconds in the 100m (the previous record was set in July 1994 by American Leroy Burrell at 9.85 seconds). Many Canadians felt his victory restored the image of Canadian athletes, which had been tarnished by Ben Johnson's previous disqualified win at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul. Bailey won a third world title in 1997 with the Canadian relay team, while finishing second in the 100m behind Maurice Greene.

In June of 1997 he raced against Michael Johnson in a 150m race at Toronto's Skydome, in a bid to truly determine who was the world's fastest man. He won $1.5 million for winning that race, in which Michael Johnson pulled out of at the 100m with a pulled quadricep.

After that season, Bailey struggled with injuries and never reached his previous level of performance. He retired from the sport in 2001 having been a five-time World and Olympic champion.

Donovan Bailey still holds the indoor world record in the 50 metres (5.56, in Reno, Nevada, in 1996), and the Commonwealth and Canadian records for the 100 metres¹.

Notes

1. Maurice Greene holds the current Olympic record for the 100 metres.

External link

• Official Website (http://donovanbailey.com/)