A stupendous night of athletics here produced the result that most people wanted to see as Usain Bolt beat Justin Gatlin to earn a third consecutive Olympic 100 metres title in 9.80sec, but even that huge feat was overshadowed by the performance of South Africa’s Wayde van Niekerk as he won 400m gold from lane eight in a world record of 43.03, breaking Michael Johnson’s 17-year-old mark.

This is the way athletics at the Olympic Games is supposed to feel.  

Will the Rio 2016 athletics programme, which gets underway tomorrow, become part of the Usain Bolt Narrative in the way that Beijing and London have already been?

Usain Bolt has launched his own range of emojis in time for Rio 2016 where he will be chasing three Olympic gold medals for an unprecedented third consecutive Games.

Usain Bolt is in a familiar position at the moment. The Jamaican is about to depart for Rio 2016 knowing adding yet more Olympic gold medals to his collection will take on further significance than merely reasserting his status as one of the best sprinters to ever take to the track.

Usain Bolt put his recent hamstring problems behind him as he recorded 19.89sec to win over 200 metres in his last race before Rio 2016 at the International Association of Athletics Federations’ Diamond League meeting in London – but even Bolt had to give best on the night to the performance of US 100m hurdler Kendra Harrison, who lowered one of the longest standing world records, the 1988 mark of 12.21 set by Bulgaria’s Yordanka Donkova, with a time of 12.20.

Usain Bolt’s last race before he defends his Olympic 100 and 200 metre titles in Rio will be the high point of interest at the two-day International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) London Diamond League meeting which starts tomorrow.

Usain Bolt believes the ban on Russian track and field athletes from international competition that was upheld by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) today has sent out “a strong message”.

The Ivory Coast earned a sprint double on the second day of the African Athletics Championships at Kings Park Athletics Stadium in Durban as Youssef Ben Meite denied home hope Akani Simbine 100 meres gold in the men’s race and African record holder Murielle Ahoure won the women’s event in 10.99sec.

Usain Bolt has claimed he would have no problem handing back his 4×100 metres relay Olympic gold medal from Beijing 2008 if Jamaican team-mate Nesta Carter is confirmed to have failed a drugs test.

Jamaican sprinter Nesta Carter has reportedly registered a positive B-sample following re-analysis of drug test results at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games, meaning the island nation should be stripped of the 4x100 metres relay title.

Usain Bolt produced his first sub-10 second 100 metres of the Olympic season as he clocked 9.98 to win the Golden Spike meeting in Ostrava - but his expected “showdown” with fellow world and Olympic champion Ashton Eaton failed to happen.

Jamaican sprint king Usain Bolt is among the many sporting stars who are supporting a new campaign launched here today aimed at protecting children from exploitation and abuse around this year's Olympic and Paralympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. 

Jamaican sprint king Usain Bolt has claimed Rio 2016 will "definitely" be his last Olympic appearance, seemingly quashing any chance of him competing at Tokyo 2020.

Six-time Olympic gold medallist Usain Bolt has labelled a proposal to reset athletics world records, in response to the doping crisis in the sport, as “pointless”.