"He was still learning the ropes": Old video of 17-year-old Usain Bolt's Athens Olympics performance sparks discussion among fans

A video of Usain Bolt has been circulating on the internet which has led to discussion among his fans about his unleashed potential back at the age of 17.

In the video, one can witness Bolt competing in the 200m event at the Athens Olympics 2004. It was Bolt’s debut Olympics as he finished fifth with a timing of 21.05s in his heat, and couldn’t make it to the next round of the competition.

This video was shared by Historic Vids on their X handle, which has now become viral. The throwback video was captioned as:

“17-year-old Usain Bolt”

After the video became viral, the X users came up with a lot of responses. One of the users commented he was still in the process of learning and hadn’t fully mastered it.

“He was still learning the ropes, I guess.”

Another user replied to the tweet stating that Bolt's journey is an example that the path to success can be a long race but one shouldn't give up.

"A 17yo Usain Bolt. He finishes out of a place in the 200m. Years later he would become the fastest man in the world. It takes time. It’s a long race. Never let young players get stressed because it’s not happening for them straight away. It can take years to develop your body and your game. Keep working hard at your craft. Be patient. Perseverance wins," he wrote.

Another user responded that this was the beginning of Bolt’s journey, stating that nobody would have anticipated the accomplishments he would achieve four years later.

“Where it all began. Nobody was prepared to see what would become of him 4 years later,” the fan wrote.

However, many users talked about how Usain Bolt's hard work and dedication were crucial in achieving his success.

Below are some more fan reactions:

Bolt went on to become the greatest sprinter of all time, winning a total of eight Olympic golds, and 14 World Championships medals, including 11 golds.

Widely called Lightning Bolt, he clinched consecutive 100m and 200m titles from 2008 to 2016 Olympics, thus becoming the only sprinter to win the events in three successive Games.

He also won two gold medals in the 4X100m relay events in the 2012 and 2016 Games. His team was later stripped of the medal that they won in 2008 in the relay event after one of the team members, Nesta Carter, tested positive for a banned substance in 2017.

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Usain Bolt is the most accomplished male athlete in the World Athletics Championships’ history

Usain Bolt after winning the Men's 100m Final at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games. (Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)

Usain Bolt is an 11-time World champion, which makes him the most successful male athlete in the World Athletics Championships. Besides this, he also won two silver, and a bronze medal at the prestigious event.

He clinched successive gold medals in the 100m, 200m, and 4X100m relay events at the championships held from 2009 to 2015, except for the 2011 event, in Daegu, South Korea, where he was disqualified for making a false start in the 100m.

Bolt is also the first athlete to claim four titles in the 200m at the World Athletics Championships. Additionally, he is the first athlete to clock below 9.7s and 9.6s in the 100m, making him one of the most accomplished athletes in the 100m with three titles.