"Jamaica, de land a wood and water and gold!" That was the chant of one woman in Half-Way Tree Square yesterday morning, following Usain Bolt and Melaine Walker's spectacular runs in their respective finals of the 200-metre sprint and 400-metre hurdles at the Beijing Olympics.

It was pandemonium in the streets of the St Andrew capital as hundreds of Jamaicans stopped to watch Bolt break the United States' Michael Johnson's 12-year world record.

Complete stop

Traffic came to a complete stop just seconds before the big race. With motorists putting on their hazard lights, even when traffic signals flashed green. Buses stopped and passengers bailed off, not because they had arrived at their destinations, but because they couldn't afford to miss Bolt's performance.

Women danced in the middle of the street, while men sat on top of their cars as the vibes increased.

As Bolt's face flashed across the screen, which was mounted in the Mandela Park, the crowd erupted.

"Gold, gold, gold!" they chanted in unison. And then he did it. In 19.30 seconds, the 21-year-old showed the world that he was the undisputed fastest man on the planet.

"Nobody nah work today, public holiday," a man shouted.

"Dem haffi name a parish offa him; rename St Catherine and just call it 'Bolt'! screamed the man's friend.

Just minutes later, Melaine Walker took to the track, winning gold in the 400-metre hurdles and smashing fellow Jamaican Deon Hemmings' Olympic record in 52.64 seconds.

"What a day fi Jamaica," one woman told The Gleaner. "We are a mighty nation, di gunman dem need fi cease fire," she said.