Bolt and the downside of fame

By Robert Lalah

Now that the Olympics is under way, the number of stories about Jamaica and its athletes being printed in papers and posted on websites across the world has skyrocketed. It's really no surprise that Usain Bolt is the focus of most of them. Bolt is clearly the biggest star of the Games, and everything he does seems to create a stir.

A Reuters story published last Friday described what happened when Bolt walked into a dining hall at the Olympic Village to have lunch. The place was full of athletes.

"Bolt was mobbed by excited Olympians when he strolled into the vast dining hall as hundreds stood to cheer and applaud the defending triple gold medallist. The whole dining room went crazy. For a couple of minutes everyone just turned into a fan."

There was an interview on nbc.com last week with five of Team USA's female gymnasts. When they were asked who they were most looking forward to meeting in London, in unison they said, "Usain!"

A Daily Mail article revealed that one of Bolt's British fans carved the sprinter's famous 'to di world' pose in a field of maize. The 150-metre tall creation takes up 15 acres of prime farmland and is complete with an inscription, 'Go Usain!' also written in maize.

And this is just a drop in the bucket. It's a task keeping up with all the stories being written on the man, even though he has kept a relatively low profile since arriving in London.

It just goes to show how big a celebrity he is. There was even talk of moving him out of the Olympic Village because of all the ruckus his presence is causing.

It's fun watching the world fawn over a man from Trelawny. The trouble is, we know what a fickle mistress fame can be. Tonight she might tantalise and caress. Tomorrow she could be burning your underpants in a bucket in the backyard.

With Bolt's popularity, the search for news about him is relentless. And the juicier, the better. There are papers to sell and viewers to attract.

It can get ugly.

On Saturday, if you googled the words 'Usain Bolt', the third story among the results had the headline: 'Usain Bolt's close friend charged for double murder.'

It was posted on a website I hadn't heard of before, but the story was quickly scooped up by some other more popular news agencies.

The story began:

"One of Usain Bolt's closest friends is facing a trial on a double murder charge. Recording artiste Vybz Kartel says he has known Bolt for more than a decade and the pair have gone on record to voice their admiration for each other's abilities."

A few hours later, the opening line of the story was changed to:

"One of Usain Bolt's favourite artistes is facing a trial ... ."

By the time it was changed from 'close friend' to 'favourite artiste' though, the story had already spread all over the Internet. The horse was out of the barn.

Anything for a story

The article mentioned a documentary in which Bolt said he liked Kartel's songs, but the rest of it was just about Kartel's arrest and the charges he's facing.

Strange how this is suddenly big news, even though the entertainer was arrested a while back.

The link the writer made between Bolt and Kartel was weak at best, but I suppose he did his job by simply getting people to click on the story.

Then, of course, you had the obligatory comment section where every man, woman and moron is free to express an opinion, no matter how asinine. And so the backlash started. People were furious that Bolt could actually like this man's music. There was little there that warrants repeating, but the sheer gusto with which they went at it was alarming.

It's a harsh reality Bolt will face with increasing frequency as his fame grows. The Kartel story could well be the opening salvo in a series of manipulated pieces aimed only at capitalising on the sprinter's fame to sell papers and increase web traffic, no matter the impact on his reputation.

Stay tuned for the exposé on the man who caught a cold because Bolt sneezed.

The good news is that so far, with all he has achieved, Bolt remains refreshingly uncomplicated. He seems to take the attention in stride and, for the most part, is unaffected by it all.

For this, I'm sure he can thank his parents and the good people of Sherwood Content who undoubtedly stand ready to share the real story of Usain Bolt with whoever wants to hear it.

Robert Lalah is associate editor - features and author of 'Roving with Lalah'. Email feedback to columns@gleanerjm.com and robert.lalah@gleanerjm.com.