Usain Bolt rode to the rescue of his beleaguered sport once again as he dashed Justin Gatlin's hopes of 100m gold at the World Championships in Beijing.
The Jamaican lived up to his billing as the saviour of athletics as he held off the challenge of two-time drug cheat Gatlin to win in 9.79 seconds.
The 33-year-old American, the sport's number one villain, especially in the wake of the doping scandals of recent weeks, had to settle for silver in 9.80secs.
Michael Johnson said: " This was Usain's best race ever. All of his medals and wins, this is the one he will be the most proud of.
"He had been tentative about his start and wanted to get out and get a clean start. He did. This was a kid in a school yard, just run for your life."
A Gatlin win in its blue-riband event was the result athletics feared and it looked likely after the semi-finals where Gatlin clocked 9.77s and Bolt only scraped a win after an awful start.
But the world record holder, the sport's leading man, the self-styled legend, knows how to deliver when the pressure is really on.
This was his fastest time of the year and the win took his tally of individual global titles to 10.
American Trayvon Bromell and Canada's Andre de Grasse each took a bronze after posting the same time - 9.911.
WORLD 100M FINAL RESULTS IN FULL:
1 - Usain Bolt (Jamaica) 9.79
2 - Justin Gatlin (US) 9.80
3 - Andre De Grasse (Canada) 9.92
3 - Trayvon Bromell (US) 9.92
5 - Mike Rodgers (US) 9.94
6 - Tyson Gay (US) 10.00
7 - Asafa Powell (Jamaica) 10.00
8 - Jimmy Vicaut (France) 10.00
9 - Su Bingtian (China) 10.06
Bolt, for whom this was a tenth individual global title, said: "Coming back from injury I've had a lot of doubters, it's been a tough road, so for me to come to the championships and defend my title is a good feeling.
"I definitely think this was my hardest race. I've been through a lot this season, it's been rough."
The 29-year-old, back at the scene of his first triple Olympic triumph, called his Munich-based doctor, Hans-Wilhelm Muller-Wohlfahrt, "a lifesaver".
He also insisted he did not feel the pressure to win for his sport, only to continue his own global domination.
And that looked on course to end after the semi-finals when Gatlin blasted home in 9.77s, while Bolt almost tripped out of the blocks and had to fight all the way to the line to snatch the win.
"I almost fell," he said.
"But after the semi-finals my coach (Glen Mills) said, 'Listen, you are thinking about it too much, there's too much on your mind, all you have to do is remember that you've been in this position way too many times, you've done this a million times so just go out there, relax and get it done'. And that's what I did."
There was a surreal moment before the final when 'the world's fastest piano player' was brought out to play a tune for 9.58 seconds - Bolt's world record time.
The Jamaican's reaction was a shrug of bemusement. And the most relaxed man in sport showed no sign of nerves on the start line.
Instead, Gatlin was the one to crack when the heat was on.
The veteran, who will get a shot at revenge when he and Bolt go head to head over 200m, felt he "gave away" victory.
"I stumbled in the last five metres, my arms got a little flaily," he said.
"You have to come out and run and over the last five metres it wasn't my day to do so.
"Anyone who goes to the line to go against Usain has to be ready to go to work. In those five metres I let things get away from me. It cost me the race.
"I leaned a little too far forward, and I got a little off balance."
Gatlin simply stated "I'm thankful" when asked repeatedly for his thoughts on the sport willing him not to win.
It was a sentiment shared by many.
