With the likes of Noah Lyles and Melissa Jefferson Wooden lighting it up, track and field fans have no shortage of stellar athletes to root for and debate about being the best. But if you ask Usain Bolt who the most exciting athletes are, well, the greatest sprinter of all time is looking beyond the sprinters.

In an interview with Esquire Middle East, the retired Jamaican legend said, “I think the top male and female athletes are Mondo Duplantis and Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone. They have been winning consistently and breaking records for several years. They always bring their ‘A game’ when it matters.” Well, the statistics show it all.

At just 26, Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone is a two-time Olympic champion in the demanding 400-meter hurdles, a feat she achieved by breaking her own world record at both the Tokyo and Paris Games. The time of 50.37 seconds in Paris was her sixth time resetting the global benchmark in just over three years. Beyond the hurdles, she showcased her supreme versatility by winning the 2025 Tokyo World Championship in the flat 400 meters with an American record time of 47.78 seconds.

Now, taking a look at Mondo Duplantis’ impressive pole vault career, he is a double Olympic champion and a three-time consecutive World Champion. However, his charm lies in the world records, which the pole vaulter has turned into his personal property. Indeed, he has broken it an astonishing 14 consecutive times since first seizing it in 2020. His current best? 6.30 meters, which he achieved at the 2025 Tokyo World Championships.

Bolt, whose own career was defined by giving perfect performances under the most intense spotlight, sees the ability to always do well when the lights are brightest as the ultimate sign of a champion. Lyles and Richardson are surely captivating because of their showmanship, but Duplantis and McLaughlin-Levrone are on top of the list because they seem to have perfection in their category.

However, Bolt has also mentioned Noah Lyles and Sha’Carri Richardson in his previous statements, keeping the two American track and field stars in a positive light.

Usain Bolt never turned down the fact that Noah Lyles and Sha’Carri Richardson have great potential

Usain Bolt has always praised Noah Lyles and Sha’Carri Richardson. After Lyles met Bolt at the Racers Grand Prix in 2023, where the American clocked a 19.67, winning the 200m, the retired legend offered a valuable personal endorsement. “Keep your same attitude. The sport needs that s***. We need personality,” Bolt said.

However, regarding Lyles’ specific ambition to break his iconic 200m world record, Bolt has been more reserved. In a 2024 interview, while acknowledging Lyles was “really doing well” and that “the possibility is there,” Bolt declined to share any tip that could help the American achieve it, stating, “I won’t tell you how to break the world record.”

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During a controversial 2021 season for Sha’Carri Richardson, Bolt made a candid confession about the American sprinter, saying, “Everybody is different. But, I think she brings a different spice to track and field. And sometimes sports need somebody like that to give the energy, to get people talking about it.” He also had some advice for Richardson.

“I would tell Sha’Carri to train harder and to be focused and not say too much. If you talk that big talk you have to back it up. So just train hard and focus on that and try to come back do it and then talk about it,” Bolt said. He has always wanted the best for the two athletes, even if they are the direct competitors to his own country’s track and field stars.