There was a time, not too long ago, when the prospect of an outstanding Jamaican athlete making an appearance on a major televised talk show abroad would fill us with as much trepidation as delight.

The delight would be for the recognition that the athlete had received and the exposure for him or her and the country. The trepidation would be worry over the language hurdles he or she would likely clip.

Breaking into US market

This time around, we need feel only delight for Usain Bolt, as he does the United States talk-show rounds later this month. As was reported yesterday, the triple 2008 Olympic gold-medal winner and double individual sprint world record holder will be on 'The Late Show', 'The Daily Show' and 'Regis and Kelly' in quick succession.

Of course Bolt's natural ebullience, displayed repeatedly in Beijing and on the Grand Prix circuit, would not have hurt his chances of getting an invitation to do this circuit of a different kind - and which holds the potential of breaking him into the huge US market as an endorsement personality.

That we need not fear Bolt fumbles the English baton on his one-man relay of the mammoth American cable TV talk shows is testament to the progress of athletics.

For, while we have long been excellent on the track, those who have been fleetest of foot (to put it mildly) have not always shown as much mastery over oral communication as they have over the eight lanes to glory.

Not that being able to express oneself effectively in standard English is a definitive indicator of intelligence, but we submit that it does indicate a certain clarity and organisation of thought required to master intellectual pursuit in that, the world's dominant, language.

For far too long, Jamaican athletes had to make do with scholarships to junior colleges in the US, or were even unable to step through doors which their athletic prowess opened for them, simply because their academic strength was the inverse of their athleticism.

With the emergence of the tertiary lever, home-grown student athlete, pioneered and dominated by the University of Technology, much of this seems to have changed.

Cringe in expression

Bolt was not alone in making a good impression in post-race interviews in Beijing. By and large, the Jamaican athletes acquitted themselves very well. And, thankfully, for the most part, we were spared the faux US accents of Jamaican Olympic teams past. Athletes wearing the black, green and gold, but going to school and training in the US, spoke in that strange 'mish-mash' of Jamaican Creole and American English with the mismatched effect of an Anglican priest being asked to preside over a revivalist ceremony.

Bolt has made us proud with his exploits on the track. We do not fear that he will make us cringe with his expression in the TV studios.

The opinions on this page, except for the above, do not necessarily reflect the views of The Gleaner. To respond to a Gleaner editorial, email us: editor@gleanerjm.com or fax: 922-6223. Responses should be no longer than 400 words. Not all responses will be published.