Donovan Bailey

Donovan Anthony Bailey, OOnt[1] (born December 16, 1967) is a retired Jamaican-Canadian sprinter, who once held the world record for the 100 metres. He recorded a time of 9.84 seconds to win the gold medal at the 1996 Olympic Games. He was the first Canadian to legally break the 10-second barrier in the 100 m. Particularly noted for his top speed, Bailey ran 12.10 m/s (43.6 km/h; 27.1 mph) in his 1996 Olympic title run, the fastest ever recorded by a human at the time.[2] He was inducted into Canada's Sports Hall of Fame in 2004 as an individual athlete and in 2008 as part of the 1996 Summer Olympics 4x100 relay team.[3] In 2005, he was also inducted into the Ontario Sports Hall of Fame.[4]

For the fictional character, see Poirot's Early Cases § The Third Floor Flat.
Donovan Bailey
Donovan Bailey
Personal information
Birth nameDonovan Anthony Bailey
Nationalitycanadian
Born (1967-12-16) December 16, 1967
Manchester Parish, Jamaica
Height185 cm (6 ft 1 in)
Weight91 kg (201 lb)
Sport
SportRunning
Event(s)50 metres, 60 metres, 100 metres, 150 metres, 200 metres
Medal record
Men's athletics
Representing  Canada
Olympic Games
1996 Atlanta 100 m
1996 Atlanta 4 × 100 m relay
World Championships
1995 Gothenburg 100 m
1995 Gothenburg 4 × 100 m relay
1997 Athens 4 × 100 m relay
1997 Athens100 m
Commonwealth Games
1994 Victoria 4 × 100 m relay
Pan American Games
1991 Havana 4 × 100 m relay
1999 Winnipeg 4 × 100 m relay

Early life

Donovan Anthony Bailey was born in Manchester Parish, Jamaica on December 16, 1967 as the fourth of five sons to George and Daisy Bailey.[1] Before going to Mount Olivet Primary School, he would take care of his family's chickens. goats, and pigs.[1] Donovan was fast when he was a young boy, with his former teacher Claris Lambert recounting that "He showed his athletic skills from grade one. He always came first in races."[1]

Bailey immigrated to Canada at age 12[1] and played basketball with John Degenhardt before his graduation at Queen Elizabeth Park High School in Oakville, Ontario. He began competing as a 100 m sprinter part-time in 1991, but he did not take up the sport seriously until 1994. At that time, he was also a stockbroker. He was coached by American Dan Pfaff.

Career

In 1993-94 he competed for Fenerbahçe Athletics.[5] At the 1995 world Track & Field Championships in Gothenburg, Sweden, Bailey won both the 100m sprint and the 4 × 100 m relay titles.

As a precursor to the centennial Olympics being held in Atlanta, Bailey broke the indoor 50 m world record during a competition in Reno, Nevada in 1996. He was timed at 5.56 seconds. Maurice Greene matched that performance in 1999, but his run was never ratified as a world record. Bailey repeated the "double" at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, setting a world record of 9.84s +0.7 m/s wind in the 100 m. Many Canadians felt his victory restored the image of Canadian athletes, which had been tarnished by Ben Johnson's previous disqualified win at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul. Bailey was only the second person to hold all the major titles in the 100 m concurrently (World Champion, Olympic Champion & World Record Holder); Carl Lewis was the first to achieve this feat.

Bailey won a third world title in 1997 with the Canadian relay team, while finishing second in the 100 m behind Maurice Greene.

After the 1997 season Bailey ruptured his Achilles tendon while playing basketball during the post season of 1998, effectively ending his career. He made a second attempt in the 2000 Summer Olympics for Olympic glory, but suffered from pneumonia and dropped out during the rounds. He retired from the sport in 2001, having been a three-time World and 2 time Olympic champion.[6]

Bailey's time of 9.84 in Atlanta was the 100m world record from 1996 until 1999, when it was broken by Maurice Greene. The time also stood as the Commonwealth record from 1996 until 2005, when it was broken by Asafa Powell, and is the current Canadian record holder (shared with Bruny Surin since 1999). His Olympic record was broken by Usain Bolt at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

World's fastest man
Main article: Bailey–Johnson 150-metre race

In May 1997 he raced against Michael Johnson in a 150 m race at Toronto's Rogers Centre in a bid to truly determine who the world's fastest man was. Earlier in the spring of 1997, Johnson began performing television promotions in which he billed himself as "the world's fastest man" as a result of his 200 meters world record, despite the fact that the 100 m world record holders are traditionally given that unofficial title. Though Bailey ran in the competition, he initially refused to take part, stating that "the world's fastest man was decided in Atlanta."

Bailey won with a time of 14.99 seconds and received $1.5 million.

Post-retirement

After racing, Bailey started his own company called DBX Sport Management which helps amateur athletes find a way to promote themselves. He also started a sport injury clinic in Oakville, Ontario.

He has been inducted into Canada's Sports Hall of Fame twice: in 2004 as an individual, and in 2008 as part of the 1996 Summer Olympics 4 × 100 relay team.[7]

In August 2008 Bailey began work as a track commentator for CBC Television at the 2008 Summer Olympics.[8] He estimated that had Usain Bolt not slowed down near the end of the 100m dash (which he still won in record time), he could have set a time of 9.55 seconds.[9] He returned as the track analyst for CBC's coverage of the 2016 Summer Olympics.[10]

In 2016, he was made a member of the Order of Ontario.[11] In 2017, Canada's Walk of Fame honoured him with a star.[12][13][14]

In 2018, it was reported that Bailey had provided his entire athlete's trust of $3.75 million to Aird & Berlis lawyer Stuart Bollefer, who invested it in what was determined to be a tax evasion scheme by the Canadian government. Bailey lost the full amount due to the scheme, however the courts ordered Aird & Berlis to pay all outstanding taxes due to their negligence.[15]

Personal best
Event Time (seconds) Venue Date
50 metres 5.56 Reno, Nevada, United States February 9, 1996
60 metres 6.51 Maebashi, Gunma, Japan February 8, 1997
100 metres 9.84 (1996–1999)
0000 (1996–2008)		 Atlanta, United States July 27, 1996
150 metres 14.99 Toronto, Canada June 1, 1997
500 metres 20.42 Luzern (SUI) July 2, 1998

See also

References
  1. Freeborn, Jeremy (2008-08-06). "Donovan Bailey". The Canadian Encyclopedia. Retrieved 2021-02-02.
  2. Rowbottom, Mike (3 June 2008). "As the 100m world record falls again, how much faster can humans run?". The Independent.
  3. "Yzerman, Lewis among Canada's Sports Hall of Fame inductees". The Sports Network. 2008-05-13. Retrieved 2008-05-13.
  4. "Donovan Bailey". Ontario Sports Hall of Fame. Retrieved 25 September 2014.
  5. http://www.sporx.com/digersporlar/rusya2013/eski-dosta-gore-turkiye-dogru-yoldaSXHBQ340722SXQ
  6. "Donovan Bailey to retire after 2001 season". CBC News. May 31, 2001.
  7. "Yzerman, Lewis among Canada's Sports Hall of Fame inductees". The Sports Network. 2008-05-13. Retrieved 2008-05-13.
  8. CBC Television, Olympic Morning, 16 August 2008
  9. New York Times, Sprinters Marvel at Bolt and Are Sure That His Best Is Yet to Come, CHRISTOPHER CLAREY, August 19, 2008 (accessed 19 August 2008)
  10. "CBC Media Centre - Press Releases - CBC ANNOUNCES ALL-STAR ROSTER OF EXPERT COMMENTATORS AND ANALYSTS FOR ITS COVERAGE OF THE RIO 2016 OLYMPIC GAMES". www.cbc.ca. Retrieved 14 September 2016.
  11. "The 2016 Appointees to the Order of Ontario". Ministry of Citizenship and Immigration. December 14, 2016.
  12. https://www.sportsnet.ca/olympics/canadas-walk-fame-honour-sprinter-donovan-bailey/. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  13. https://www.kelownanow.com/news/news/National_News/Donovan_Bailey_1_of_6_Canadians_inducted_into_Walk_of_Fame/. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  14. https://www.cbc.ca/sports/olympics/trackandfield/donovan-bailey-walk-fame-1.4404649. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  15. https://www.thestar.com/news/investigations/2018/06/11/inside-the-offshore-tax-scheme-that-left-iconic-olympian-donovan-bailey-owing-nearly-23-million-in-unpaid-taxes.html
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