Usain Bolt (right) of Jamaica shakes hands with the United States' Tyson Gay after Bolt set a new world record of 9.72 seconds in the men's 100 metres at the Reebok Grand Prix athletics meet last Saturday in New York. - AP

NEW YORK CITY, New York (CMC):

New 100-metre world record holder Usain Bolt has embraced the thunderous Jamaican support he got as he sped to an unprecedented 9.72-second clocking at the Reebok Grand Prix last Saturday night.

Cheered on by a massive number of Jamaicans in the stands at Icahn Stadium, Bolt erased the previous world mark of 9.74 seconds as he soaked up an outpouring of "homeland support".

"I always perform good in front of my Jamaican fans," Bolt said.

"They're so loud. And I like noise," added the 21-year-old moments after claiming the title "the world's fastest man".

About 6,500 fans at New York's Randalls Island stadium were greeted with the history-making run by the young Jamaican.

His mark eclipsed by 0.02 seconds the previous record set last September by his compatriot Asafa Powell, and left American Tyson Gay, the 2007 world champion, in the runner-up spot in 9.85 seconds.

Sign of patriotism

A majority of the fans appeared to be dressed in green and gold, colours of the Jamaica national flag.

Some waved the Jamaican flag. The Jamaican National Anthem was sung during a rain delay and reggae music blared on the public address system.

The field, which paired Bolt against Gay in a major pre-Olympic Games clash, appeared nervous.

There was a false start against American Mike Rodgers.

The second attempt to run Saturday's race was aborted when the runners stood up in the blocks. On the third attempt, Bolt got a searing start and Gay never threatened. Gay was only one-hundredth of a second off his personal best, but he finished a well-beaten second.

The tailwind was 1.7 metres per second, under the allowable limit of two metres per second.

Bolt threw his arms up and circled the track, beating on his chest at one point at the sheer dominance and authority of his effort.

"I knew if I got Tyson on the blocks, I'd have a better chance of winning," he told reporters afterwards. "I got him."

Good start

Gay managed to close slightly near the finish, but conceded that Bolt was superior on the night.

"He (Bolt) got a pretty good start, maybe a little better than I thought," Gay said.

"I didn't realise his stride was so big. I honestly think we were on the same rhythm, except his stride pattern was so much bigger," he added. "He covered more ground than I did."

The 6-foot-5-inch native of Trelawny, in northern Jamaica, was thrilled over his record run but suggested it will take an Olympic gold medal to validate the world record.

"You can have the world record, but to me, if you don't have a gold medal in the Olympics or World Championships, it means nothing," he said.