THIS was supposed to be a 100m sprint. Eight of the world's fastest men going flat out for the line. Instead seven men covered the distance at full speed, while the man who won it blitzed them in an 80m dash then spent the final 20m acknowledging the crowd and posturing for the cameras.

Usain Bolt is the new undisputed champion. Quite clearly the fastest man on earth. Watching the display was enough but the scoreboard confirmed it.

As camera flashes twinkled around the stadium, capturing the moment for posterity, the finish times were posted. The Jamaican had broken the world record he himself had set in June, crossing the line in 9.69seconds. The question on everyone's lips was how fast he would have been if he had gone at full pelt for the entire 100m.

"I haven't seen a replay yet," said the 21-year-old, after completing his lap of honour, "so I don't know but people are saying maybe 9.60." Fellow finalist Marc Burns said it would have been more like 9.55secs.

"I wasn't worried about the world record. I didn't know until after the victory lap (that I had broken it]. I came here to become Olympic champion and I did that so I'm happy with myself."

He did it in emphatic style, beating Richard Thompson of Trinidad and Tobago by 0.2 second — the biggest winning margin in an Olympics 100m since Carl Lewis bettered Sam Grady in 1984. American Walter Dix was third in a final which saw six runners break the 10 second barrier, the most to have managed that feat at an Olympics.

Even before the athletes took to their blocks, there was a mood of celebration as the camera panned along towards Lane 4, occupied by Bolt. On it's way there the lens was met with the steely stares of focused men but when it zoomed in on Bolt, he began gesturing and dancing as though he hadn't a care in the world. As the pictures beamed on to the stadium screens, the crowd went mad. Not only a runner but an entertainer too. Bursting from the blocks, he uncoiled the 6ft 5in frame which still jars with many observers, who have been raised on a diet of stocky, muscular sprinters. They are deemed to have less of a tussle with the laws of gravity when it comes to getting up quickly enough at the gun and into their stride. The short distance isn't supposed to favour tall men but by the 50m mark, the race was already won. "I don't really think about how I did it, I just went out there to win. Credit to my coach, he has done a lot of work on my start and been trying to improve my reflexes and I went out there and executed it."

"I had a pretty good start and was with him until about 50m," said Thompson. That was the point the race changed. Watching Bolt surge away he then knew it was a race for silver. "I just relaxed because I felt pretty comfortable for second. I saw him ahead of me, he's slowing down, I'm still pumping for the line."

In the end, Bolt needed just 41 strides to cover the 100 meters. Practically skipping over the line, he flapped his arms and blew kisses to the spectators, and when he looked to his right, it wasn't to suss out where any challenge was coming from. No, he was merely offering the bank of photographers and television cameramen a full-on view. Of his antics he said simply that he liked to have fun. "I have been doing that all season. I like dancing, I like to stay relaxed."

Ironically given his blistering speed on the track, off it there is nothing supercharged about the youngster. Laid-back, he gives the impression of a guy who would list sleeping or simply chillin' with mates among his favourite pastimes. He didn't even get out of bed in time to fuel his body with breakfast on the morning of his biggest ever race. "I got up around 11am and sat around watching TV, then I had lunch. I had (chicken] nuggets and then I went back to my room and slept again for three hours, then I had more nuggets."

It seems to work. The Jamaican came to Beijing as the favourite. The new kids out the blocks. Asafa Powell, his elder compatriot, was a contender and someone who had experienced it all before. Then there was Tyson Gay, the American who had been swapping records and results with the youngster all year long. But in the end Gay, who has struggled with a hamstring injury which upset his Games preparation, didn't even make the final, finishing fifth in his semi.

But even on form he would have struggled to stay with Bolt. Although he may have forced him to keep the foot on the accelerator all the way to the line.

Having set a new world record in June and apparently peaking at the right time, the query regarding Bolt had always been whether he could deliver in a high-pressure environment when the eyes of the world were on him. In the Olympics Games, in the blue ribband event, he had absolutely no trouble. It was a devastating display of sprinting.

"Yeah, it was definitely impressive," conceded bronze medallist Rix, talking about the world record. It was the first time since Donovan Bailey that anyone had managed to channel the pressure and hype into a run which proffered them both the gold medal and a world record. "But that's not to say it won't be broken again."

Powell hailed Bolt as "the greatest ever" after his victory. He said: "He's the best. There's no stopping him. He could have been faster. He was definitely untouchable tonight. He's spectacular. He's definitely the greatest."

Powell could not hide his disappointment after only managing to finish fifth and said: "I was very shocked I didn't get a medal. I really wanted to get a medal. If I would have got second, I would have been happy. I was very tired. I messed up big time, my legs died on me."

One target Bolt is now chasing is Michael Johnson's 200m time. Having decided to double up and attempt the longer distance as well, there would be no major surprise should he surpass it here. He says it can wait, that it is just the medal that matters and that there will be plenty more opportunity and time to harness that but he has laid down a marker.

Just as Michael Phelps has managed in the swimming, Bolt has raised the bar and suggested that greatness lurks on the track as well as in the pool at these Games. He may not be able to match the swimmer numerically but Bolt could still hoover up three golds – he also competes in the 4x100m relay, where Jamaica will be one of the favourites given the fact the occupied three of the eight starting berths for the individal final. If every one is earned as impressively as this, he could yet be as integral a part of the XXIX Olympiad's history as the American.