New Delhi: Legendary athlete Carl Lewis is confident that Usain Bolt's world records will remain safe for a long time, while insisting that huge fines should be imposed on dope cheats to deter them from taking shortcuts to success.

Lewis, whose career spanned four Olympic Games from 1984 Los Angeles to 1996 Atlanta, yielding nine gold medals in sprints, relays, and long jump, also said India must invest heavily in building a sporting culture and infrastructure to emerge as a track and field powerhouse.

With Jamaica's Bolt setting the bar high in the 100m and 200m, Lewis said, “I don't think anyone can break the 100m world record of 9.58 seconds anytime soon. There's probably a better shot at the 200m world record of 19.19 seconds, but the 100s is away for a while.” He added that he has always loved the long jump more than sprints.

Lewis, recalling his 100m duel with Ben Johnson at the 1988 Seoul Olympics, stressed that dope cheats must face financial consequences. “They should go after you financially. Unless you reimburse, pay a fine, you can't come back from the ban. Maybe that ends your career. That's on you,” he said. Johnson had been stripped of his 100m gold for testing positive for steroids.

Relentless testing, Lewis said, is the only way to rid athletics of dope cheats. “The vast majority of people are clean, but until there's a permanent fear, we won't have a dope-free environment.”

Sporting culture and infrastructure key
Lewis said India needs both sporting culture and infrastructure to succeed in track and field. “What India needs to do is invest—through corporate sponsorship or government support—to develop children. India has enough talent, but infrastructure is missing. As youth succeed, others will emulate them.”

He cited the United States' youth programs AAU and USATF and its collegiate system as key to its success. Lewis has been head track and field coach at the University of Houston since 2014.

Learning cricket from Amritraj
Lewis said he knows a bit about cricket thanks to India's tennis great Vijay Amritraj. “About 10 years ago, I had lunch with Vijay, and he explained how to score cricket. I don't follow much cricket, but there is cricket being played in Houston now, so that's good.”

Genes too play a part
On the role of genetics, Lewis said, “Some people are genetically predisposed to excel more than others. Whether it's fair or not, it is what it is. Some are tall, some short; some are super smart, others struggle. That's just the way it is.”