Usain Bolt, Olympic charm champion

There was no doubting who was the star of the show, but when Usain Bolt made history in the men's 200m final, an accompanying cast of bemused and bedazzled characters had their moment in the limelight, too. First there were the two young Locog volunteers, struggling admirably to retain their composure as the Jamaican flirted and fist-bumped his way to the starting blocks. But it was after his victory that Bolt really exploded with characteristic bravado, performing push-ups for the cameras – and then borrowing one of his own to capture the moment. "He's taller than me, he's faster than me, and now he's trying to be a better photographer than me," joked Jimmy Wixtröm, a 26-year-old Swede covering the Olympics for the Aftonbladet newspaper. It was not Wixtröm's first brush with Bolt; he had given him his camera during the 2011 Daegu world championships and let him take a couple of snaps of his own. Then, in Rome earlier this year, Bolt agreed to turn the camera on himself while he was training, giving the Swede some shots of him smiling and posing. Such was the hype surround Bolt at the Olympics, however, that the photographer was unsure whether he would be recognised. But the day before, Bolt promised him that they would take some pictures together, without specifying where or when. As he performed his victory lap, it became clear the photoshoot was going to be directed by the newly crowned Olympic champion. "Regular athletes, they wouldn't do that, but with Usain, it's like no one else," said Wixtröm, who ended up with about 40 photos on his camera, including ones of Yohan Blake prowling as "the beast" and the massed ranks of the stadium's photographers looking on in bewilderment. "He's a huge person, not just a huge athlete." Later, at a press conference, Bolt joked that the perseverant Wixtröm was "stalking" him. Wixtröm's bosses in Stockholm, meanwhile, are unsurprisingly "very happy". Daren O'Dea, a 40-year-old sports agent who has known Bolt for years through his work at Pace Sports Management , also featured prominently in the exuberant celebrations. Wearing a Usain Bolt T-shirt given to him by the man himself, O'Dea was greeted with a hug and a high five by the 200m winner. "It was an amazing experience," said O'Dea, who has worked with all three of Thursday night's Jamaican medallists – Bolt, Blake and Warren Weir – during their stays in London. "Warren had come over first – I'd spoken to him before the race and I was giving him a big hug ... and then Usain spotted me and gave me a big hug." Together, the two men performed one of Bolt's catchphrases in relay. "He said 'Number one, baby,'" said O'Dea, "and I said, 'All day, every day.'" The gesture did not come as a surprise. "He's a really nice guy, very generous and good fun to be around," said O'Dea, adding that Bolt and his compatriots had been reluctant to celebrate their own medals while Kenyan world record breaker David Rudisha was being awarded his. "That's the mark of the men," he said. "They're humble guys."