A justly proud and grateful nation erupted with jubilation last Sunday evening as the ace sprinter and now legendary Usain Bolt sprinted into the annals of athletic history.

There are not enough adjectives to describe his spectacular achievement. He is the first athlete in history to have won the 100-metre event three times in the Olympics. Now he sits on top of a mountain where it is not conceivable that any other human being on Earth will reach any time soon. From this standpoint he has created a one-man Mount Rushmore (the national memorial to four American presidents immortalised in stone in South Dakota).

Even terminal eight at the John F Kennedy International Airport in the United States was temporarily shut down as fans of Bolt reacted to his victory. The eruption of jubilation was so unprecedented that the authorities heard gunshots where there were none. All across the island and the world people reacted to his victory with consummate pride. It was a Bolt moment where everyone, perhaps even his worst detractors, owned a piece of him.

Very seldom does the world experience human phenomenal achievements of the magnitude that Bolt achieved. When it does, the reaction of awe is well understood. You may forgive those who would even deify his achievements, but we should go a little easy on the immortality argument.

There are many things that can and will be said of Bolt’s victory as we analyse his spectacular achievement. There are no superlatives, hyperboles or metaphors that can sufficiently describe this moment in history. How he walks, what he eats, how he sleeps, how he laughs, and even what he wears will come up for special scrutiny. We are looking at a phenomenon unlike what we have seen before, and it is just correct that we all should enjoy this moment with him.

In his victory is wrapped up the collective hopes of those who dare to dream that life can be better than it may present itself. That if one works hard, with the attendant discipline, one can achieve one’s goals. Particularly, this should be a lesson that the young people would learn. At 29 years old, Usain had to subject his body to the rigours of training. In the last 15 years he has had to forego many things that youngsters of his age would have liked to indulge in. But from early, with the help of his parents and no doubt his coach, he came to understand that if he were to become legendary as an athlete, he had to walk away from the distractions and sometimes go on a lonely path. He took the long, hard road to success.

In an age when many of our young people are being enticed by an ephemeral pursuit of wealth and materialism, Bolt’s achievement should be a useful reminder that microwaved solutions are not on. It is a useful reminder that taking short cuts through life do not bring the desired results since they can bypass useful lessons that ought to be learnt.

Bolt, no doubt, has been offered these short cuts, but he chose the long, less travelled road to the pinnacle of his sport. By doing less he would just have become a mere athlete. But he wanted better and he strove to do better, ignoring the naysayers around him.

So his achievements are not just about physical prowess, though this was an indispensable component in his victories. They are about the building of character. Physical prowess will not last, but a character built on the discipline of hard work and integrity will.

It is in this sense that we can speak of him as an immortal presence, as what he has done will be long emblazoned in our collective memories. The Jamaican people have moved to cement that memory in the accolades that will be paid to him in words and monuments. With this latest achievement much more will be done. But in our celebration of his achievements, let us not forget the core of his inspiration to us, which should force us as a people to reach into our collective souls and discover that inner greatness which lies in all of us.

Well done, Usain, we are proud of you!

Dr Raulston Nembhard is a priest and social commentator. Send comments to the Observer orstead6655@aol.com.