Usain Bolt
His loss in Rome notwithstanding, Jamaica's Usain Bolt is still considered the world's fastest man, holding both the Olympic and world records for the 100-meter dash. Reuters

Jamaica’s Usain Bolt, the world’s fastest man, lost to American Justin Gatlin in the 100-meter finals by a hundredth of a second in Rome Thursday.

The stunning loss came in the IAAF Diamond League race, and the 26-year-old later said to reporters on the track that he got the start out of the blocks that he wanted but couldn’t come away with the victory. Gatlin finished at 9.94 with Bolt in second right behind him at 9.95.

While the story may be Bolt’s loss, it is certainly a huge accomplishment for Gatlin. Still considered one of the best sprinters in the world in his own right, even after he served a four-year ban for steroid use from 2006 to 2010.

To be fair, this was not an Olympic race and some may view the race as a preview or tune up for the Moscow World Championships in August.

Bolt tweeted after the loss: “@usainbolt Fret not myself Bolt world or be worried. Thanks for all the support and believe me when I say #iwillbeback”.

Bolt still owns the Olympic record time of 9.63 seconds, and the overall world record of 9.58 seconds, which he set in 2009 in Berlin.

The video below shows the entire race.

Sprint