I was in London during the Olympics. All I can say is, forget the complaints of a few. For a glittering week, the world fell in love with Jamaica.

And why shouldn't it? We sent a group of loveable young men and women to Beijing, where they laughed and partied while tearing up the track. Asked what secret substance lay behind Jamaica's triumph, Shelly-Ann Fraser giggled and told the BBC it was banana and dumpling. The commentators stressed that after years of being tarnished by doping scandals and vicious competitiveness, Jamaicans had restored innocence to the Olympic Games.

It was the best of Jamaica: that ability to take over the world stage, yet never lose the light-heartedness of Usain Bolt, the exuberance of Ms Fraser, the humility of Asafa Powell, or the sense of community of Melaine Walker. No matter that they are superstars. They, and all the others who made a country proud, return to communities where everyone knows their names, a country where they are still - as one of my sons put it - the kids we watched at Champs.

I reckon it is that rootedness which gave Jamaica's athletes their charming distinctiveness. Much was made of the 'laid-back' character of Jamaica by foreign observers.

In truth, there was nothing laid back about it. These are young men and women, in some cases coming from the most despised neighbourhoods, who struggled in frequent solitude and in the face of adversity to be the best they could be. They merely embodied a culture in which there was a time to sow, and a time to reap. No doubt some of them had had to do their share of mourning in the past. But, when the time to dance came, they taught the world a few new moves.

Our great achievement

It gave us all a warm glow, wondering what Jamaica might yet achieve. Perhaps the country's history of track success offers a lesson for national development. This strong tradition was launched by path-breakers, who prompted generations of youngsters to emulate them. It is a tradition which nurtures individual excellence, rewarding performance rather than prospect.

That is actually easier than it sounds. Excellence is a buzz-word with which nobody takes issue. However, as Usain Bolt has shown, some people are just born fast. Others may spend their lifetimes trying to catch up, but never will, because they were not born with that gift. Their talents lie elsewhere. Jamaican track coaches know that. In the schools, they practise it, without mercy: in Jamaica, there are few medals for effort.

However, this is something a nation has come to terms with. For most, not blessed with fast legs, it is enough to go to the National Stadium once a year to cheer on favourites and schoolmates. We know we can excel elsewhere. And we have also accepted that as a little country, we cannot do everything. So we have invested our scarce resources where they will yield the greatest returns, in a mere handful of events at the Olympic Games.

Jamaica's sprinters offer us all a lesson. It may be the way forward for the country, economically. Do only what we're best at. Leave it to driven individuals to find out what it is we're best at. Once those stars materialise, nurture them. Let the competition be fierce, but let the winners remember where they came from, and what they owe to those who went before and who made all this possible.

And, who knows? Maybe one day, Jamaica will be the superstar of economies, as today it is the hero of the Olympics.