Today the Observer begins the 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:

I’m the fastest man in the world! Argument done!

Usain Bolt – The fastest man in the world. Never, ever do I get tired of hearing that. If you lined up a hundred people and asked them who the best basketball player in the world is, the best footballer, or the best cricketer, it is unlikely they would provide the same answer. But ask any of them, ‘Who is the best sprinter in the world?’ and there would be only one answer – Usain Bolt. Why? Because that is what it says on the clock. There can be no dispute or argument. The record books say that over the 100 metres flat race, the true measure of human speed, I’m the fastest person that ever lived, completing the distance, as I did at the World Championships in Berlin, in 9.58 seconds.

It is said that the population of the earth is 6.8 billion and that approximately 107 billion have lived on this planet since man came into being. It doesn’t get any cooler than knowing you are the fastest of them all.

I chose to be a sprinter, not only because I was the fastest kid in school, but also because I knew that politics couldn’t interfere. In team sports it can be down to opinion whether you are the best. One coach might think you’re good enough for his team, another might not, or the side could be picked on friendship or family ties. But in athletics you are either faster or you aren’t – opinion doesn’t come into it.

We had a grass track at the front of Waldensia Primary School…with a two-foot dip at the end of the straight, and when I first raced on it a guy called Ricardo Geddes would beat me. One day the sports coach, Devere Nugent, bet me a lunch money that I could beat Ricardo. I like my food, so it was a big incentive. I won, enjoyed a nice meal, and never lost to Ricardo again. Winning that race was my first experience of the thrill of beating your closest rival, and from that day on my motto has always been ‘Once I’ve beaten you, you won’t beat me again’.

As I went on to win gold medals and set world records at the Olympics and World Championships, I felt exactly the same about taking on my Jamaican team-mate Asafa Powell and the Americans Wallace Spearmon and Tyson Gay as I did about racing against Ricardo Geddes. The aim was the same – to run as fast as you can and get to the line first, whether you are in the highly charged atmosphere of the 91,000 capacity Bird’s Nest stadium in Beijing or on the school field.

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