World’s fastest man also one of most riveting

Michael Phelps has another load of gold and other medals, and Simone Biles was the heartbeat of the women’s gymnastics team, but maybe the most compelling person of the 2016 Olympics hasn’t been determined.

Or maybe he is in the process of becoming just that.

Usain Bolt doesn’t own as many medals as Phelps, who had another great Olympics, but he does own the title of Fastest Man in the World, which goes to just one person every four years. Bolt also is a compelling figure, and he dominated the 100 meters for the third consecutive Olympics.

Saying Bolt is the fastest man in the world is just a simple statement of fact. No one can beat him. No one.

The Jamaican sprinter won the 100 meters so easily all he needed was his cellphone to capture a selfie of the smile that seems to spread warmth across the world.

He owns the world record with a time of 9.58. The second fastest time ever recorded was 9.63, and he ran that. He is tied for the third fastest time of 9.69 with Tyson Gay and Yohan Blake.

The 6-5, 205-pound Bolt has declared this is his last Olympics, but he’s only 29 and he could win more gold in Tokyo in 2020 and not be as fast as he is now.

One thing is for certain: Bolt does not need the money.

His net worth is reported at $60 million, which is more than Phelps at $55 million, and the cost of living in Jamaica is about 25 percent less than the USA.

Bolt has been making about $9 million a year from Puma and gets north of $250,000 for participating in track meets around the world.

It also has been reported that he throws some wild parties in his five-bedroom home in Jamaica, so loud and lasting so long that his neighbors wish he would move.

However, that’s not the Bolt the world sees on the Olympic center stage.

He embraces fellow athletes with hugs and everyone else with a smile that could endorse products in any country in the world, including the USA.

His charm and personality are always front and center, and when he was trailing midway through the 100-meter finals Sunday, there was a moment of dread. But he straightened up, cocked his shoulders and found that gear no other human has.

As a kid, Bolt dreamed of being a cricket player, but by the end of elementary school his speed and athleticism were becoming so apparent the cricket coach encouraged him to focus on track and field.

From the time he burst onto the Olympic scene in 2008 in Beijing until now, Bolt has been consistent in not only his speed but also in his claim he isn’t out to set world records, just win gold. Many times he has slowed up when victory was obvious.

That has attracted some criticism, but the fastest man in the world has too much personality and confidence to worry much about what others are whispering.

However, he is a world record holder.

He set that world record for the 100 meters in 2009 at a meet in Berlin, and four days later went out and set the world record in the 200 meters with a 19.19. With him running the anchor of the 400 relay team for Jamaica, the country set the world record for that event in 2012 with a 36.84.

Tonight, Bolt supposedly will run his final individual race as an Olympian in the finals of the 200 meters, and there seems to be only one person who can keep him from another gold medal: Usain Bolt.

Whether or not he is the most compelling athlete of these Olympics remains to be seen, but he is still the fastest man in the world.