Olympia Lightning Bolt may be the best baby name we’ve heard this year — and fans have Usain Bolt’s girlfriend, Kasi Bennett, to thank for it. While speaking with Kevin Frazier about the new Apple TV+ series, Greatness Code, Bolt opened up about welcoming his baby girl — and how her unique name came about.
“It’s actually my girlfriend, Kasi, that came up with the name. We sat down and went through a few names and she was like, ‘I really love Olympia,'” he explained. “I was like, ‘I feel like you’re going to put pressure on her.’ … I actually warned her and she’s like, ‘No, this is what I like.'”
Bolt quickly came around to the idea, because as he shared, “We had a deal that if we had a girl, she would give the girl a name, and a boy, I’d give the boy the name.” Olympia’s middle name, “Lightning,” was a joint effort.
Olympia was born in May, but Bolt and Bennett announced her name and shared her first photos last week.
“It was exciting,” Bolt told 360aproko of becoming a dad. “I was very excited when it happened, when she came into the world. But after that it was just work, work, work.”
“It’s rough. I have a newfound respect for like, single parents, because it was tough on both of us. I got sick because of no sleep and stuff, so it was something that was new,” he admitted. “But it’s a great experience. I’m enjoying it.”
“Everybody says, ‘Get ready… You’re gonna be around her little finger,'” Bolt said. “So let’s see what happens.”
Bolt is also already feeling protective over his baby girl.
“The only thing I worry about with my daughter is the pressure of people wanting her to run, because they’re already like, ‘Oh, she’s gonna be an athlete.’ I’m like, ‘No,'” he said. “I’m gonna try to protect her from that side, because I know people are gonna push her towards track and field. I’ll show her everything, but I’ll let her take her time and decide what she wants to do.”
The eight-time Olympic gold medalist’s career takes center stage on an episode of Apple TV+’s new docuseries, Greatness Code. The series spotlight the untold stories of some of the most known athletes in the world, including Bolt, LeBron James, Tom Brady, Alex Morgan, Shaun White, Katie Ledecky and Kelly Slater.
“When you get an opportunity to be a part of something this big, to be in the class of all these greats, for me it was a no brainer,” Bolt said. “They called and I was like, ‘I’m ready, just let me know.'”
“I always knew I was good at running. But being on the circuit and competing with all these top athletes was when I kind of realized, like, ‘You know what? This is it. This is something I really enjoy,'” he recalled of the moment he knew he was going to make his mark on the world. “I finally decided, ‘I’m gonna put some work in.’ For me, it was like ’08 when I really decided, ‘This is my talent, I’m going to use it.’
