Usain Bolt Jokes That American Justin Gaitlin Paid Cameraman To Take Him Down

Usain Bolt has addressed Thursday's encounter with a mobile cameraman on a Segway.

If you missed it, a cameraman lost control and ran into the elite runner just after he won the 200-meter final during the 15th IAAF World Championships in Beijing.

Bolt blamed the Americans, specifically one of his biggest rivals: American sprinter Justin Gatlin. Per The New York Times, Bolt joked:

" 'He took me out,' Bolt said later, uninjured and smiling. 'The rumor I'm trying to start right now is that Justin Gatlin paid him off.'

"Gatlin's deadpan response: 'I want my money back. He didn't complete the job.' "

Bolt also didn't take issue with cameraman. The BBC reports:

"He ... told reporters: 'Accidents happen. I have a few cuts but it is nothing that I have never done to myself in training. I will be all right.' "

Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.