Andre de Grasse and his mentor Usain Bolt competing in Rio in 2016. GETTY IMAGES

Andre De Grasse is feeling good about his chances of retaining his title at the Paris Olympics. The six-time Olympic medallist became the first Canadian to win a track event in 28 years when he won the 200m dash in Tokyo. 

"I’m feeling pretty good, I’m excited. I mean, third time’s a charm, that’s what they say, I’m excited to go to Paris and these Games, this time around, I’m just pumped up," De Grasse told The Daily Mail in an exclusive interview.

Paris will be the third time the 29-year-old will be making an appearance at the Games. He first stepped onto the world stage in Rio 2016, taking home the bronze in the 100m race, behind USA’s and Jamaican Usain 'Lightning' Bolt. 



He then took home a silver in the 200m and another bronze in the 4x100 relay. His podium finishes sparked talk of him being Bolt's heir apparent in the athletics world, a claim that Bolt supported back then.

"He came through again. He's going to be good. he runs just like me, I mean, he's really slow at the blocks, but when he gets going, he gets going," Bolt said about De Grasse at the time.

He first met Bolt in January 2016. Later that year the pair would exchange smiles as they crossed the line in the 200m race, one of the most iconic moments of the games. He said Bolt told him to stay focused and avoid all distractions.

"One of the things that kind of just stood out to me with him was to see how much fun he had out there. How much he just kind of smiled and enjoyed the crowd," De Grasse said of Bolt, who retired eight years ago.



De Grasse now wants to follow in his mentor's footsteps and lead what he calls the 'new generation' of sprinters this summer. "I just want to keep going out there, leave a mark in this sport, and create a legacy that people will look up to and be inspired by. So yeah, I gotta keep going until the wheels fall off, as they say," he said.

De Grasse also aims to compete at the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles, where he raced for the University of Southern California during his collegiate years. It was then that he broke the 200m Canadian record with a time of 20.05 secs.

"I think for me, I never liked to put a time limit or expiration on how many Olympics I can do. I think my goal and objective is to make it to at least 2028 LA because I feel like that would be a full-circle moment for me," he said.