Supercar showroom founders pay £25,000 for Bolt’s spikes

THE founders of a brand new super car showroom in Birmingham have successfully bid for a pair of running spikes owned by the world’s fastest man, Usain Bolt.

Eamon Gaughan and Stuart Lawton, the entrepreneurs behind The Torque Project in Birmingham’s Bullring, paid £25,000 for the shoes signed by the triple world record holder and Olympic champion in a charity auction at the University of Birmingham.

Lawton said: “Having the opportunity to win a unique piece of sporting memorabilia and meeting Usain Bolt in person was just amazing. It was even more gratifying to hear that the money raised will help to bring a Jamaican student to our great city and one of its finest universities.”

The spikes were the highlight of the auction, conducted by Stephen Whittaker of local auction house Fellows, at a private gala dinner at the University of Birmingham attended by the Jamaican Olympic team.

Also auctioned was a running vest signed by the Jamaican track and field team that went to celebrity chef and businessman Levi Roots for £4,200.