THIS is part eight in the Observer’s 10-part serialisation of Usain Bolt: My Story 9.58 — Being the World’s Fastest Man, chronicling the life of triple Olympic and World champion Usain Bolt, from his early primary school days to the present time.

Bolt speaks from the heart in this revealing autobiography. From his experiences as a schoolboy athlete and his struggles with injuries; to his family life and performances at the 2008 Beijing Olympics and 2009 World Championships in Berlin, he recounts and shares, in his customary easy-going and candid style, his hopes and his regrets, and his plans for the future.

Inspiring and entertaining, this easy-to-read book at over 280 pages is in full colour and contains never before seen photographs of Bolt at work and at play. Testimonials from those who have had a major influence in the young athlete’s life give the book a truly authentic voice. Enjoy:

In the Jamaica High School Championships of 2003, I broke both the 200m and 400m records by a good margin. It was clearly time for a serious discussion about whether athletics should become my full-time career. If that was the case there was no reason for staying at William Knibb any longer, and after a meeting between my parents, my teachers and Mr Norman Peart (manager), I joined the big world, moved to Kingston and became a professional athlete.

I signed my first contract with Puma sports company, a four-year agreement. It seemed like an enormous sum of money. Puma was the sponsor for the Jamaican team for all major events. The company is ingrained in the country, and they’ve been very good to me. Because of my success, William Knibb is sponsored by them and the school never has to buy any athletics kit for the pupils, it is all provided.

…When I look back, though, Puma got me on the cheap, given that I was the best junior in the world, and I still joke with Mr Peart that he should take the blame for that… But we were both learning together and we are a lot wiser today.

On moving to Kingston, Mr Peart and I stayed with another athlete who has become a good friend, Jermaine Gonzales. Then Mr Peart got married and I moved in with him and his wife… I needed him around because my parents weren’t there. Like my dad, he wasn’t keen on me going out and kept teaching me life lessons about how, if I wanted to be a great athlete, I shouldn’t go off drinking and clubbing every night of the week. For a red-blooded teenager who had moved from the country to a bustling city, there were a lot of attractions and distraction, but Mr Peart, unlike my dad, let me find out the good and the bad for myself and never stopped me going anywhere.

Early in 2004, I broke the World Junior record for 200 metres at the CARIFTA Games in Bermuda, running 19.93. For four months until the Athens Olympics, it was the fastest time in the world by anyone, in the juniors and the seniors. On the face of it, being a full-time athlete was working, but I wasn’t happy. I didn’t like the training regime imposed by my coach Fitz Coleman.

…Mr Peart was on Coach’s side. He said I wasn’t a schoolboy anymore, that this was professional atheltics, and to learn to tough it out. It wasn’t the way to get the best out of me. I warned that if I got injured they would all be to blame.

9.58 — Being the World’s Fastest Man by Usain Bolt, published by Ian Randle Publishers, price J$2,000/US$22.95.