Photographer: Olivier Morin, AFP photographer
Date: 11 August 2013
Description: Lightning bolt visible as Usain Bolt crosses the finish line to win the 100m sprint final at the 2013 World Athletics Championships in Moscow
Surely would rank among the greatest sports photographs of all time.
Morin was quoted to have said:
A half an hour before the race everybody saw the beginning of a thunderstorm and many lightnings. All of us were trying to get those lightnings with the 10,000m which was just before. But to combine the lightning and the racers, it’s already difficult with two parameters at the same time. I’m editing…the remote cameras on this laptop after (from trackside). I went through all of the remotes (cameras) and this is the last one. The fifth one, I go to directly the pictures that are there. I didn’t see all of it at first when it was the small images. I just saw Bolt in the frame, because the image was a small size. I say, "OK, Bolt is in and he looks sharp". Then I open the picture and say "Ooo". There’s lightning there and a second shot with lightning. And then I notice that there is something there. So here we go. It’s a difficult picture to talk about, because this one is 99 per cent of fortunate (luck). To instance of lightning. I could have not preplanned this. The only thing I am responsible for is the framing and the timing of pressing the button (for the remote camera). The rest is out of my control. The god of weather was with me last night. To have this lightning just at this moment for Bolt himself. I’ve got to say, it was my day.
