Usain Bolt is mourning the death of his father, Wellesley Bolt.
The Jamaican sprint legend and his family are mourning the death of the family patriarch. According to the Jamaica Observer, Wellesley Bolt passed away on Monday, March 31, following a lengthy battle with an unknown illness. Usain Bolt has not yet released a statement confirming his father’s passing, but sources told Urban Islandz he is saddened by the news.
“He (Usain Bolt) and the entire family are saddened by Wellesley’s death,” sources told us. “Wellesley was a well respected family man and member of his community, so we know a lot of people are reaching out at this time. The Bolt family is requesting privacy at this time.”
Usain Bolt previously praised his father and his mother, Jennifer, for their role in his legendary sprint career. A product of William Knibb Memorial High School, Bolt started his journey in sports by playing cricket. He was often seen playing cricket with his friends in his community of Sherwood Content in Trelawny.
Bolt spoke about the advice his father gave him during his recent interview with Wayne Marshall’s “The Cut.”
“[My] first year of high school, tracks one thing and cricket, I still wanted to play cricket so they would train me I would go around. So the coach start complained to my father and said, ‘yo, that man not coming for training’, and I would use my time for cricket because cricket really my love,” he told Marshall. “But after a while, my father come and explain to me that is running I have to do cause too much politics inna cricket. Him watch the game so him know and understand how things run.”
In his autobiography, Faster than Lightning: My Autobiography, Usain Bolt spoke about the advice his father gave him that turned his attention to athletics.
“Pops set me straight on the matter,” he wrote. “Cricket, he said, would prove to be a political game for me, rather than one that was based on my talents and hard work. A coach’s team choices were sometimes swayed by favoritism, but in athletics, a person was selected through his times and personal bests.”
“In cricket, there are other people involved because it’s a team sport,” he added. “It can get tricky. You could play well, better than anyone else, but if the coach has a favorite, then you might not get picked. That happens quite a lot in life and it’s unfair. But in track and field you’re the boss of yourself.”
Wellesley Bolt was age 68 at the time of his death.
