Usian Bolt will arrive in Australia on Saturday "with a hit list of demands," according to Nick Walshaw of the Sydney DAILY TELEGRAPH. First off, that "his hire car be black." A-League side Central Coast Mariners CEO Shaun Mielekamp said, "Color of choice, apparently. So black it is." As for the "other demands on that Bolt rider?" Mielekamp: "No, there's only the one. We've had no requests for private bodyguards, personal masseurs, chauffeurs. Nothing about providing bottled water from France, either. Apparently, Usain's happy to drink Gosford tap water like the rest of us." While the Mariners are "giving little away" about the Jamaican's accommodation, the club "employed the help" of millionaire property developer and Central Coast resident Tony Denny. Bolt will "get about in one of several Hyundais the club is provided with each year as part of a sponsorship deal." Asked how Team Bolt would "fit inside anything but a stretch Hummer," Mielekamp said, "There isn't any entourage. It's only Bolt and his manager, and the latter is already here. So, when Usain arrives at Sydney airport this weekend, he will be traveling alone. And when he drives, it will be in a Hyundai like everyone else at the club" (DAILY TELEGRAPH, 8/12).
GET ON BOARD: In Sydney, Robbie Slatter wrote football fans across Australia need to get "on board the Usain Bolt bandwagon," because it is "filling up quickly." For once, the country has a "genuinely exciting story to celebrate, a legend of world sport who wants to play in the A-League." Already the "naysayers are taking potshots," saying it is "a circus that does nothing but degrade the name of the A-League." Whether it is "jealousy, snobbishness or just stubbornness," it is "the type of attitude that harms our game." We have a "good competition but when we have a chance to promote it so many people automatically turn negative." We have the "fastest man in history keen to test himself in our league, and every move he makes will be recorded, written about and analysed." Every story will mention the Mariners and the A-League. Those two organizations "have to realise the opportunity they have in front of them" (DAILY TELEGRAPH, 8/12).
