Advertisement
Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games
SportOther Sport

Profile | Yohan Blake: biography, top speed, Jamaican national records, and Covid-19 vaccine refusal ahead of the Tokyo 2020

  • From promising youth cricketer to multiple track gold medals, ‘Beast’ goes step for step with the world’s fastest
  • Going into his third Games, Blake explains why he would ‘rather miss the Olympics than take a vaccine’

Reading Time:3 minutes
Why you can trust SCMP
Jamaica's Yohan Blake after their men’s team set a new world record in the 4x200m relay at the IAAF World Relays Championships in Nassau, the Bahamas in 2014. Photo: Reuters
SCMP Reporter

Yohan Blake is quite literally the second-fastest man on the planet with his 100-metre and 200m personal bests just milliseconds behind former Jamaica teammate Usain Bolt.

Advertisement

There was a time when the two-time Olympic gold medallist was considered to be even more promising than his countryman, as Blake is still the holder the Jamaican junior national 100m record and is the youngest-ever 100m world champion.

In 2008, Bolt told fans to “watch out for Yohan Blake” because he “works like a beast and is there with me step-for-step in training”. High praise from the undisputed greatest sprinter of all time – and not a bad nickname, too.

Whether the “Beast” will ever reach his early career promise remains to be seen – Bolt has since retired with newborn twins earlier this month – but there is no doubt he will roll back the years when he assumes his lane position at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games. From his impressive youth cricket career, to being part of the legendary Jamaica sprinting quartet, to his refusal to take a Covid-19 vaccine ahead of next month, here’s what you need to know about the motivational 31-year-old speedster.
100m sprint bronze medallist Yohan Blake of Jamaica on the podium at the 2018 Commonwealth Games in the Gold Coast, Australia in 2018. Photo: AP
100m sprint bronze medallist Yohan Blake of Jamaica on the podium at the 2018 Commonwealth Games in the Gold Coast, Australia in 2018. Photo: AP

Biography

Yohan Blake was born on December 26, 1989 in St James, Jamaica. He was an avid cricketer at St Jago High School and was known for his fast bowling. It did not take long for the school to identify how physically quick he was and later it convinced him to prioritise short-distance racing. He still reportedly plays cricket in the off-season for Kingston Cricket Club.

Advertisement