Planet Earth pauses to watch the spectacle of sprint

By Scott Russell, CBC Sports

It is the most hyped event of the Olympics.

The men's 100-metre final occurs early in the track and field program and it never fails to get you hooked. 

• WATCH: Full replay of the men's 100m final
• FULL SCHEDULE & RESULTS: Track & field in Rio

Even in a troubled time for international athletics with allegations swirling about of corruption and widespread (even systematic) doping, this one event demands that we all pay rapturous attention.

"There have only ever been 27 champions in this event in Olympic history," said 1996, 100m champion Donovan Bailey from our CBC studio in Rio de Janeiro immediately prior to the gun going off.

"The results of this race will be on the front page of every newspaper on the planet right away."

Bailey couldn't have been more right.

The men's 100m sprint has been run since the very first Games held in Athens in 1896. In the 12 decades that have elapsed since Thomas Burke of the United States won in 12 seconds flat, the earth pauses for a brief, shining, moment, once every four years, to answer a simple but mysterious question.

Everyday action can be grand theatre

How fast can a human being go in a foot race?

The lead up to the affair has turned into grand theatre. There are contestants from every corner of the world because there isn't a single place anywhere where people don't run as a matter of course in their everyday lives.

There are heroes and villains built into the mix. A constant undercurrent of who's legit and who's not runs through the narrative of the impending drama.

But on a night like the one that has just unfolded in Rio, with the king of track and field, Usain Bolt of Jamaica, cast in the starring role, the scene was set for a plot point to the Olympics.

Bolt had promised to win for a third consecutive time and to help save the image of his sport. He vowed to provide the fans with something they could take to the bank in order to prove the Games still have worth as a reflection of what human beings are capable of.

Over in an instant

And as the racers exploded out of the blocks and onto the lanes that spread before them, the effort became all too real. We all collectively held our breath, in the Olympic city, and around the globe.

In the end, it was over in an instant, as it always is. The race is like a beautiful toy that we love to admire fleetingly once every four years.  

Once the finish line was crossed the celebration ensued as Bolt struck a familiar pose and played the part of the beloved champion…the people's champion. He danced and smiled and waved the flag. He embraced Andre De Grasse of Canada, the bronze medallist, and blessed him as the bright young man whom he fully expects will become his successor.

All became right with track and field's world because its greatest star had delivered on the day. And Usain Bolt's fantastic legend will no doubt become embellished because of what has transpired in South America.

The classic 100 is a race which evaporates in a very few seconds. But the impression it leaves will endure for years to come.

The Olympic sprint is, above all things, a spectacle.

And as it is with all great spectacles, you feel fortunate to have witnessed it first-hand.