NEW DELHI, July 1 – The world's fastest man Usain Bolt will not compete at the Commonwealth Games in India despite his name appearing in the preliminary entry list, his manager was quoted as saying on Thursday."I can 100 percent confirm that Usain will not be running at the Commonwealth Games," manager Ricky Simms told the Times of India.
Simms said he was surprised Jamaica had entered Bolt’s name and urged the organisers of the October 3-14 Games not to raise hopes that the double Olympic and world sprint champion would run in New Delhi.
"Maybe this list was sent in some time ago," Simms told the newspaper. "The Commonwealth Games is not on Usain’s schedule for this year.
"I do not understand why officials cannot just accept his decision and stop putting out more stories in the press. They should focus on the athletes who are coming to India."
Bolt’s coach Glen Mills had also said last month that New Delhi was not on the sprinter’s agenda, but Games organisers insisted he would be the star attraction at the Games.
"Bolt will surely come," organising committee spokesman Lalit Bhanot had told reporters, adding that the Jamaican authorities had included him in the preliminary entry list.
Organisers were hoping that Commonwealth Games Federation chief Mike Fennell, who hails from Jamaica, would convince Bolt to make the trip to New Delhi.
Bolt is currently recovering from an Achilles tendon injury which forced him to miss the Diamond League event in New York last month.
The Jamaican – whose compatriot Asafa Powell is the defending Commonwealth Games champion – won the 100m and 200m gold medals in world record times at the 2008 Beijing Olympics and repeated the feat at the 2009 world championships in Berlin.
The Commonwealth Games, which feature 71 nations and territories of the former British empire, are India’s biggest sporting event since the Asian Games in 1982.
Robert
October 26, 2011 at 2:36 pm
Before, 2bob would get me a whole packet of PATCO sweets (Just enough for a Birthday Party) while today, the same price would get you half a single tablet-that’s if at all they sold in halves!
Njugunakim
October 26, 2011 at 3:11 pm
I can remember back in the 1970s, 2 bob was enough to go buy yourself alcohol and also buy your friends a round and still have some money left to pay for their cab fare home.I can also remember with 2 bob one would be able to acquire a gramaphone as well as get your favourite musicians L.P’s or albums thrown in there which cost something like 40 cents each and enjoy the melodious tunes at a cheap price and still have some cash left to pay your rent at the end of the month.
Georgebgz
October 26, 2011 at 10:55 pm
Plate of lunch consisting of rice and stew,now it’s a hundred times that in an average restaurant…
Anthony Adero
October 27, 2011 at 8:21 am
i used to buy bajhia and mabuyu at two bob!
Esther Njeri njoroge
October 27, 2011 at 8:27 am
I used to buy goody goody at two bob!!!
CLEMENT LUYALI
October 27, 2011 at 10:20 am
i remember those days when i was in primary i was given 5/= for lunch. there were those biscuits that were round and small. i could buy a packet and retain balance but now it is over 30/=
Gideonbett
October 27, 2011 at 12:17 pm
huh! two bob was enough to buy lots of cabbages from a neighborhood but 2day one cabbage cost 50 bob. also an egg was two bob from a retail shop but today its 15 bob.
Angeldiyah
October 27, 2011 at 4:43 pm
Back then thea were those sweets dat were chocolate coloured called goody goody….n if they existed now Cld definately cost much more….n u Cld also get into a circus/fanfair wid 2bob….
Naitwa Evans
October 28, 2011 at 10:32 am
Just thinking about the 70’s brings back treasured memories that I wish had lasted. It was a time when I could buy half a loaf of bread at 30 cents, i could get sugar cane from the kiosk at ten cents, sugar itself costed around thirty cents for half a kilo! If my memory serves me right, the newspaper went for roughly a shilling! Add all these expenses to the budget of a father then and you would realize that he still had 30 cents for bus fare….that is if a bus passed by the road! otherwise you would just have to trek the 10 kilometers home: the remaining 30 cents would probably end up in the busaa den. Funny how inflation has changed things…2 shillings cannot get u anything! At least you can get to surf the internet with it: otherwise it would be just some loose change.
Irene Warui
October 28, 2011 at 1:21 pm
well. i’m a ’90s kid. @ bob was what i used to spend to buy those dracula chewing gum that would make us look like vampires and scare our peers!! I was also in love with goody goody and i could get 4 of those for 2/=!!
Jackson Kimotho
October 30, 2011 at 4:46 pm
Talking of 2bob,those days when i was i kid,Late ’80’s they use to call it “rupia” that is;RUPEE…parents give you that 2bob as pocket money meant your were a “Sonko” in your “shagz” and i could buy sweets or Biscuits which would run for a whole week.
But know,its a BIG DREAM which will never come to pass again!,unless surfing via safaricom 3G through updating social media pages, downloading complete movies and series, chat online etc, ONLY.
Jackson Kimotho
October 30, 2011 at 4:50 pm
Talking of 2bob,those days when i was i kid,Late ’80’s they use to call
it “rupia” that is;RUPEE…If parents give you that 2bob as pocket money
meant your were a “Sonko” in your “shagz” and i could buy sweets or
Biscuits which would run for a whole week.
But know,its a BIG DREAM which will never come to pass again!,unless
surfing via safaricom 3G through updating social media pages,
downloading complete movies and series, chat online etc, ONLY.