Usain Bolt: Reaction to the Olympic 100m final

Usain Bolt emulated legendary American athlete Carl Lewis by defending his Olympic 100m title on Sunday.

The 25-year-old Jamaican set a new Games record as he won in a time of 9.63 seconds, the second-fastest time in history.

Here, BBC Sport rounds up the best reaction from another stunning night inside the Olympic Stadium.

What the finalists had to say:

Usain Bolt:

Gold. 9.63secs. Olympic record.

"It means one step towards being a legend, so I'm happy with myself, but it's only one step, I have the 200m to go. I was slightly worried about my start, I slipped a little in the blocks. I don't have the best reactions, but I secured it and that's the key."

Yohan Blake:

Silver. 9.75secs. Equalled his personal best.

"To be the second-fastest man in the world behind Bolt is an honour. He is the fastest man in the world and I've got a silver medal. What more can I ask for?"

Justin Gatlin:

Bronze. 9.79secs. New personal best.

"It feels great to be back after eight years. Simply just to come back and use my God-given talent. I went out there and I did the best I could do. A lot of people on Twitter and Facebook think that I'm the bad guy, but I'm not and I had to prove that tonight."

What the BBC experts say:

Darren Campbell, Olympic 200m silver medallist (2000):

"We said if he was anywhere near the field in the first 30m, who would be able to handle him? Those gigantic strides opened up and that was the Usain Bolt show. If we were to be picky, it was a terrible start, but it doesn't matter, he just needed to be in striking distance. His hunger has been questioned but I always believed he would want to put on a show for the people of Great Britain. He loves this country."

Steve Cram, Olympic 1500m silver medallist (1984):

"He wasn't the best out of the blocks, but he didn't need to be. He has got so much more than the rest of these guys. It is the strongest field there has ever been in this event but they cannot touch Usain Bolt."

Michael Johnson, Olympic champion in 200m (1996) and 400m (1996 and 2000):

"Bolt went into this race knowing he was going to win gold. He was under a bit of pressure, but his technique looked better than it has recently. It wasn't a great start, but it didn't need to be. Bolt is the best there has ever been, there is no doubt about it."

Denise Lewis, Olympic heptathlon champion (2000):

"It went to the form book really. It was a superb race. Everyone wanted to see this kind of race and they haven't been disappointed."

Colin Jackson, Olympic silver medallist in 110m hurdles (1988):

"The best thing about Usain is that he always produces the goods when it matters. We mentioned his start, but it wasn't that poor. He can put his foot down and that makes a massive difference. "

What the newspapers are saying:

The Independent: BOLT BLOWS AWAY THE COMPETITION

The Times: ROCKET MAN

Daily Mirror: WONDER BOLT!

Daily Mail: UNSTOPPABLE!

The Guardian: 9.63 BREATHTAKING SECONDS

What people are saying on Twitter:

‏ Donovan Bailey

Olympic 100m champion (1996):

"To @usainbolt - The first man to officially repeat, one word: LEGEND."

Ato Boldon

Olympic 100m silver medallist (2000):

"Proof that things are changing….9.80 = NO MEDAL in the 100m. Best ever 1-5 Olympic final times. For me, this was the greatest race ever."

‏ Harry Aikenes-Aryeetey

World Junior 100m champion (2006):

"Wicked race but my heart goes out to @officialasafa and @TysonLGay. They deserved so much more!"

Derek Redmond

Olympic 400m semi-finalist (1992): ‏

"Well, Bolt is the man!! I still believe he is not 100% fit but fit enough to win the title!! Will he run the 200m??"