Usain Bolt asked Lauren Hemp for her shirt after watching Manchester City’s Women’s Super League victory over Chelsea on Sunday.
The eight-time Olympic gold-medallist sprinter was in the stands among a crowd of 5,222 at the Academy Stadium as City ran out 2-0 winners.
Hemp produced the assist for Filippa Angeldahl’s opener before doubling the lead with a goal of her own, and it seems the Lioness’ efforts certainly caught Bolt’s eye.
After the contest, Hemp posted a picture on Twitter showing her posing with Bolt and the pair holding up her shirt, and wrote “when fast met faster, you decide which one”, accompanied by a winking face emoji.
And City defender Esme Morgan told a press conference: “She (Hemp) has been struggling with an ear infection over the last few days.
“So I was sat across from her in our pre-match meal and she was looking all down in the dumps, obviously in a lot of pain, and I was like ‘come on Lauren, you’re going to have the best game of your career today, believe, believe!’
“And she ground away, scored an amazing goal and she does graft so hard, she’s always there fighting back, pressing, battling – and I’ve heard Usain Bolt has just asked for her shirt, so she must have impressed!
“She just came to me and said ‘Es – guess who’s just asked for my shirt?’ And I was wracking my head through the Chelsea team, thinking who has she had a battle with today, they might have wanted it after. I was too tired to think of anyone, and she was like ‘Usain Bolt’ – I couldn’t believe it! Must be the pace!”
A post from Bolt’s Twitter account showed him posing with City striker Khadija Shaw, his fellow Jamaican who has scored 15 WSL goals this season.
Bolt was also at a match in Manchester last weekend, watching the men’s FA Cup as Manchester United, the club he supports, beat Fulham 3-1 at Old Trafford in the quarter-finals.
